Boston College Introduction

Founded in 1863, Boston College is a Jesuit, Catholic university located six miles from downtown Boston with an enrollment of 9,484 full-time undergraduates and 5,250 graduate and professional students. Ranked 35 among national universities, Boston College has 888 full-time and 1,281 FTE faculty, 2,711 non-faculty employees, an operating budget of $1.4 billion, and an endowment in excess of $3.5 billion.

Job Description

Full-Time Equivalent Hiring Range: $94,600 to $118,250; salary commensurate with relevant experience.

Reporting to the Principal Investigator and Director of the Research Program on Children and Adversity, Dr. Theresa S. Betancourt, the Associate Director of Research is tasked with coordinating the research activities of the lab to ensure they achieve the goals and deliverables set out by the lab's Principal Investigator and donors. They achieve this by supervising research program managers and other administrative staff to ensure work plans are advancing the lab's research objectives and by organizing proposals that strategically contribute to the lab's research portfolio.

The Research Program on Children and Adversity (RPCA) at Boston College School of Social Work focuses on observational research to understand trajectories of risk and resilience in children facing multiple forms of adversity while also using these research outcomes to develop and test evidence-based interventions to promote child health, development and family functioning. The program team, including a network of talented local collaborators, has developed and evaluated several transdiagnostic interventions that are both feasible, effective and able to be integrated into a range of social protection, health and education programs in low- and middle-income countries. The RPCA manages a diverse global research portfolio; including several active projects, the details for which can be found at www.bc.edu/rpca. Essential Functions Include:

PROVIDE OVERSIGHT OF STUDY IMPLEMENTATION IN FIELD (20%): Manage 4-5 Research Managers/Administrative Manager and related personnel to contribute to research outputs. Work with stakeholders (local stakeholders, community-based organizations along with government and nongovernmental partners) to ensure study aims are fulfilled. Work with the Boston College and sub-contracted institutions' administrators, field-based program managers, and post-doctoral fellows to ensure that research budgets fulfill the scientific aims of the projects. Spearhead budgeting and forecasting [including burn rate, monitoring, etc.] for current and upcoming proposals using detailed Excel budgeting or other related systems. Understand the importance of administrating sponsored research within funder parameters, including NIH/federal and philanthropic funders. Work with the RPCA Grants Administrators to ensure Program Managers' abilities to support project budgets to help forecast expenses across projects. Coordinate with Boston College internal departments, such as but not limited to the Institutional Review Board, Office of Sponsored Programs, Transferring and Licensing, and School of Social Work to manage outputs related to RPCA research are managed and negotiated with the respected parties.

SUPERVISE RESEARCH AND DATA COLLECTION (20%): Support in-country and Boston College data analysts to ensure data collection is met with scientific standard. Liaise with any third-party data collection firms to create and oversee processes regarding study design, assessment battery creation, and deployment in the field. Refine systems of data collection and management to be in line with the trends in research related to implementation science in Low- and Middle-Income Countries (LMICs) and technology-based data collection systems. Ensure that study enrollment and data analysis advances according to expected timelines and that all quantitative and qualitative data is well organized while upholding strong ethical and scientific standards. Directly oversee all Boston College Program Managers and support partner-country IRB, DSMB and local ethics committee requirements and applications. Work with the Principal Investigator to support all research staff and postdoctoral fellows working with the RPCA lab both internally and externally to problem solve on all field-based research projects or dissemination outputs. As needed, be able to step in for program managers and oversee all research activities related to RPCA funded research Provide technical assistance to local community partners to ensure local partners are able to fulfill study aims and ensure programs are delivered with fidelity. Travel to research sites as needed (2-3 times per year).

PROMOTE AND COORDINATE RESEARCH DEVELOPMENT (50%):
Oversee the grant writing, refinement and submission process of grant submissions, including federal and philanthropic funders. Remain current on all advances in the literature on implementation science, child development and mental health services research to ensure that the RPCA avails itself to the most advanced analytic and data collection methods. Support the publication and data dissemination efforts in publications, grant applications, communications materials and other products of the RPCA lab. Engage in networking with stakeholders to expand the RPCA research portfolio. Act as a proxy for the Director in all meetings and engagement with current and potential stakeholders.

OVERSEE LAB ACTIVITIES (10%): Along with the Administrative Manager and adjunct staff, oversee students working with the RPCA lab to create student work plans and monitor activities of students both at Boston College and externally. Provide mentorship and one-on-one supervision of students, program managers, administrative managers, and key personnel as needed. Ensure student work contributes to the scientific knowledge of the lab as a whole. Ensure productivity of research managers, including monitoring their management of using electronic systems such as BOX, Asana, and G-Suite.

This position is based in Boston with a flexible work environment.

Requirements

Doctoral degree in Public Health, Social Work, Psychology, or another related field, preferred; MPH or Masters required. A minimum of five years' experience as a translational scientist investigating cross-cultural mental health and child development topics. A minimum of five years' experience in research program management or research coordination in the mental health, child development, implementation science, or public health field. A minimum of three years' experience conducting research to include: research conceptualization and implementation, data analysis, and preparation of data for dissemination in publications and conference presentations. Proficiency in utilizing computer applications including Microsoft Office, STATA, SPSS, Atlas.ti, MAXQDA, MPLUS and other applicable quantitative and qualitative data analysis platforms are preferred. Expert knowledge of qualitative and quantitative research methodologies including Community Based Participatory Research (CPBR), implementation science in LMICs, fidelity monitoring and mixed methodology. Understanding of the application of technology both for data collection and data management, as well as routine symptom monitoring, fidelity monitoring and quality improvement efforts in global mental health and child development. Experience managing diverse team members preferred. Ability to travel internationally in order to supervise and support research projects abroad in sub-Saharan Africa or related research site. Ability to work nights and weekends as needed in order to fulfill work responsibilities and meet project deadlines.

Closing Statement