University of Chicago

Discussion

Research Coordinator

Department

Crown Research Molina


About the Department

As one of the first schools of social work in the United States, the Crown Family School of Social Work, Policy, and Practice has shaped the field for more than 100 years. As part of the University of Chicago, the Crown Family School shares the University's core values and distinctive intellectual culture. Crown Family School faculty, staff, and students focus on identifying solutions to complex social problems through research, training, and direct community engagement. Guided by an interdisciplinary tradition, Crown Family School scholars conduct innovative research to address interconnected social challenges such as educational inequality, health disparities, crime and violence, poverty, and child and family welfare—working at multiple scales, from individual to policy-level interventions. More than 10,000 Crown Family School graduates in the US and globally hold leadership positions in academia, at nonprofits, in business, and at governmental agencies. The Crown Family School is the home of three academic centers. These include the Susan and Richard Kiphart Center for Global Health and Social Development, the Kersten Institute for Urban Education, and the Center for Climate, Health, and Society (CHAS). More information may be found at https://crownschool.uchicago.edu/.


Job Summary

The Family ENGAGEMENT Research Group at the University of Chicago Crown Family School seeks a Research Coordinator to support innovative research focused on maternal and infant mental health. The coordinator's primary responsibility will be supporting a newly funded learning collaborative with home visiting programs that aims to strengthen maternal mental health identification, referral, and implementation of evidence-informed practices. While the learning collaborative will be the coordinator’s primary responsibility, the position is designed as a research program coordinator role supporting multiple community-engaged studies and grant applications within the Family ENGAGEMENT Research Group. This includes contributing to a growing portfolio of research focused on maternal and infant mental health, economic hardship, home visiting, early childhood systems, and implementation science. The coordinator will work closely with community organizations, healthcare partners, and interdisciplinary collaborators to support community-engaged implementation research.

This position offers the opportunity to contribute to externally funded research and develop skills in project management, implementation research, qualitative and quantitative methods, and academic writing. This position will be responsible for maintaining project timelines and ensuring accurate and ethical data collection and analysis. The Research Coordinator will receive close mentorship from Dr. Abigail Palmer Molina in implementation science, maternal and infant mental health research, community-engaged research, project management, and scientific writing. Opportunities for scientific authorship, conference presentations, and professional development are available based on contributions to the research program.

The applicant must have outstanding organizational and communication skills, project management abilities, academic writing skills and team management skills. This position requires knowledge of MS Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and other statistical/qualitative data analysis programs. The position is grant funded, with the term of the assignment continuing for the duration of the initial grant and subsequent grant renewals. If the grant is not renewed, the position will end in alignment with the grant end date, July 30, 2027.

To learn more about the Family ENGAGEMENT Research Group and our research, please visit our website (https://familyengagement.crownschool.uchicago.edu/).

Responsibilities

  • Maintains technical and administrative support for across research projects, specifically coordinates implementation of a multi-site learning collaborative designed to improve maternal mental health identification, referral, and support within the Parents as Teachers home visiting program, including communication with participating sites, meeting coordination, and project tracking.
  • Coordinates with Principal Investigators and project leadership to develop, implement, and monitor IRB applications and ensure procedures are conducted with fidelity.
  • Oversees data collection to ensure the consistency of procedures across projects, including the administration of surveys and interview protocols, data monitoring and cleaning, qualitative data coding, response rate and participant demographic tracking.
  • May present work at scientific meetings and contribute to scholarly publications.
  • Reviews documents for spelling, grammar, and adherence to APA style guidelines.
  • Coordinates monthly research group meetings and agendas.
  • Supervises research group student workers, as needed.
  • Serves as the key research contact for the project for the Family ENGAGEMENT Research Group.
  • Maintains recruiting and scheduling research subjects; assisting with developing or amending study protocols; assisting with developing data collection tools; assisting with building databases; and providing general administrative support. Has general awareness in research techniques or methods, regulatory policies and procedures, and relevant scientific field.
  • Analyzes and maintains data and/or specimens. Conducts literature reviews. Assists with preparation of reports, manuscripts and other documents.
  • Performs other related work as needed.


Minimum Qualifications

Education:

Minimum requirements include a college or university degree in related field.


Work Experience:

Minimum requirements include knowledge and skills developed through < 2 years of work experience in a related job discipline.


Certifications:

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Preferred Qualifications

Education:

  • Master’s degree in related field strongly preferred.

Experience:

  • 1 - 3 years of experience with research and research project management, preferably in the fields of maternal mental health, infant mental health, early childhood development, home visiting, and/or implementation science.

Preferred Competencies

  • Excellent organizational skills and keen attention to detail.
  • Ability to work independently and to manage own time and work tasks.
  • Strong written and verbal communication skills, including academic writing skills.
  • Experience with one or more statistical, qualitative, or survey software packages (e.g., STATA, SPSS, NVivo, Dedoose, REDCap, Qualtrics) and willingness to learn additional platforms.
  • Exemplary team research competency, including effective communication, willingness to engage with a range of perspectives, and flexibility in contributing to team efforts.
  • Preparation to work diligently to maintain confidentiality and follow university policies regarding data security.

Working Conditions

  • Hybrid work schedule, on-site at the Hyde Park campus in Chicago
  • During data collection or high activity points in the project, additional hours above 30/week may be required.

Application Documents

  • Resume (required)
  • Cover Letter (required)
  • References (upon request)


The University of Chicago uses AI-assisted tools to streamline and augment some recruitment processes; however, AI is not used to make hiring decisions.

When applying, the document(s) MUST be uploaded via the My Experience page, in the section titled Application Documents of the application.


Job Family

Research


Role Impact

Individual Contributor


Scheduled Weekly Hours

30


Drug Test Required

No


Health Screen Required

No


Motor Vehicle Record Inquiry Required

No


Pay Rate Type

Hourly

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FLSA Status

Non-Exempt

​
Pay Range

$25.00 - $30.00

The included pay rate or range represents the University’s good faith estimate of the possible compensation offer for this role at the time of posting.


Benefits Eligible

Yes

The University of Chicago offers a wide range of benefits programs and resources for eligible employees, including health, retirement, and paid time off. Information about the benefit offerings can be found in the Benefits Guidebook.


Posting Statement

The University of Chicago is an equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, or expression, national or ethnic origin, shared ancestry, age, status as an individual with a disability, military or veteran status, genetic information, or other protected classes under the law. For additional information please see the University's Notice of Nondiscrimination.

Job seekers in need of a reasonable accommodation to complete the application process should call 773-702-5800 or submit a request via Applicant Inquiry Form.

All offers of employment are contingent upon a background check that includes a review of conviction history. A conviction does not automatically preclude University employment. Rather, the University considers conviction information on a case-by-case basis and assesses the nature of the offense, the circumstances surrounding it, the proximity in time of the conviction, and its relevance to the position.

The University of Chicago's Annual Security & Fire Safety Report (Report) provides information about University offices and programs that provide safety support, crime and fire statistics, emergency response and communications plans, and other policies and information. The Report can be accessed online at: http://securityreport.uchicago.edu. Paper copies of the Report are available, upon request, from the University of Chicago Police Department, 850 E. 61st Street, Chicago, IL 60637.

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