Job location: Charlottesville, VA

The University of Virginia School of Education and Human Development's Center to Promote Effective Youth Development (Youth-Nex) is seeking highly qualified applicants for a one-year Postdoctoral Research Associate position, with the possibility of extension to two years based on an annual basis dependent upon satisfactory performance and the availability of funding. This position is part of a program that trains scholars to conduct research related to promoting effective youth development, intervention, and programming, including preventing problem behaviors. The candidate may support implementation of either or both of the two federally-funded projects described below:

The National Center for Rural School Mental Health (NCRSMH) brings together researchers, clinicians, and rural school partners to conduct research that improves academic and behavioral health outcomes for rural young people. Faculty affiliated with the NCRSMH currently lead projects related to needs assessment, intervention adaptation, training, and implementation of rural school mental health prevention and early intervention services. Partner schools for this project are located in Virginia.

The R-CITY Project a 40-school randomized controlled trial funded by the National Institute of Minority Health and Health Disparities (R01). Over four years, the project aims to test the impacts of an intervention focused on racial equity literacy promotion in elementary and middle schools through a teacher coaching intervention and a teacher-led, classroom-based student curriculum. The partner school system for this project is located in Maryland.

Responsibilities:

• Run advanced quantitative analyses using software such as Stata, R, Mplus, HLM, and/or SPSS with mentorship and direction from faculty on the broader research team (e.g., Catherine Bradshaw, Jessika Bottiani, Amanda Nguyen, Heather McDaniel, Katrina Debnam).
• Generate research questions for analysis utilizing quantitative and qualitative data collected from prior trials of prevention programs and frameworks like PBIS, Double Check, Coping Power, MTSS-B.
• Lead and co-author papers for submission to peer-reviewed journals.
• Communicate research findings at key conferences (e.g., Society for Prevention Research, Society for Research in Child Development, Society for Research on Adolescence).
• Contribute to submission of federal and private grant proposals including to funders (e.g., current and prior funders include Institute of Education Sciences, National Institutes of Health, William T. Grant Foundation).
• Support the implementation of current trials, which may include research activities related to obtaining, modifying, and continuing institutional review board approval (IRB), developing and refining survey measures, communicating with local district and school partners, supporting data collection including classroom observational and online survey data.
• Contribute to the intellectual environment of the broader team by keeping current on recent scientific studies and relevant advanced quantitative methods.
• Support the team with data cleaning and project management tasks as needed.
• Other tasks including various writing and content creation (e.g., research briefs to partners), tool development, technical assistance, and presentations.

Qualifications:

Education: An earned Ph.D. in a research-oriented Education, Psychology, Public Health or a related, research-focused field is required by the start date of the position.

Experience: Prior experience conducting analyses for, writing, and submitting peer-reviewed journal articles as a first author is required. Prior experience developing content and contributing to submission of a federal or private grant proposal is preferred. One year postdoctoral experience is preferred. The ideal candidate is an early career researcher with a track record of publishing as a first author in scholarly peer-reviewed journals with of focus in school psychology and conducting advanced quantitative statistical analyses. Expertise in mixed methods and qualitative methods is also welcome and supported.

Knowledge/Skills/Abilities:

• Content expertise in some of the following areas: rural and/or urban K-12 school settings, school climate, multi-tiered systems of support, positive behavior support, social emotional learning, restorative practices, positive and equity-driven school discipline, racial discipline disproportionality, rural school mental health, school-based intervention, teacher professional development and coaching, culturally responsive or sustaining teaching, classroom management, teacher psychological wellbeing and efficacy (including stress and burnout), and implementation/coaching supports.
• Methods expertise in one or more of the following areas: Classroom observational data collection and analysis; latent variable analyses (person- or variable-centered); multilevel modeling of nested student, classroom, and school-level data; data visualization; longitudinal data analyses; propensity score analysis; classical test theory or item response theory (IRT) based measurement and psychometric analyses; large-scale survey data analysis; research-practice partnerships and conducting applied research in school settings; cost analysis; implementation of cluster and student randomized controlled trials.
• Administrative expertise: Proficient with Dropbox, Box, Google Suite, Microsoft Suite (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, Teams), Zoom, Qualtrics or similar survey data collection tools, online software for delivering engaging content such as Nearpod or similar, and ability to learn new software quickly and introduce new useful applications and platforms to the team. An eye for design and visualization of data is preferred.

Physical Demands: This is primarily a sedentary job involving extensive use of desktop computers. The job does occasionally require walking some distance to attend meetings, and programs.

Anticipated Hiring Range: $55,000 to $60,000 (commensurate with qualifications). For more information on the benefits available to postdoctoral associates at UVA, visit postdoc.virginia.edu and https://hr.virginia.edu/benefits.

Application:

For questions about the position, please contact Catherine Bradshaw, and for questions about the application process, please contact Margaret Weeks.

Please apply through Workday, and search for ‘'Postdoctoral Research Associate, Youth-Nex". Complete an application online and attach:

• Cover letter (addressed to Catherine Bradshaw)
• CV/resume
• Two publications/writing samples
• Statement of research interests
• Contact information for three references who can comment on your scholarly accomplishments and promise.

Submit all materials into the resume submission field, multiple documents can be submitted into this one field, alternatively you can merge your materials together and submit as one. Internal applicants must apply through their UVA Workday profile. Applications that are missing materials will not receive full consideration.

Research Associates are appointed annually, and continuation is dependent upon satisfactory performance and the availability of funding. Review of applications will begin 10 days after posting and will remain open until filled.

COVID Vaccination Requirement and Guidelines

Please visit the UVA COVID-19 Job Requirements and Guidelines webpage prior to applying for current information regarding vaccination requirements and guidelines for employment at UVA.

The University of Virginia, including the UVA Health System which represents the UVA Medical Center, Schools of Medicine and Nursing, UVA Physician’s Group and the Claude Moore Health Sciences Library, are fundamentally committed to the diversity of our faculty and staff. We believe diversity is excellence expressing itself through every person's perspectives and lived experiences. We are equal opportunity and affirmative action employers. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to age, color, disability, gender identity or expression, marital status, national or ethnic origin, political affiliation, race, religion, sex (including pregnancy), sexual orientation, veteran status, and family medical or genetic information.