[Jobs] NIJ Research position

[Leora Lawton]

 Job Opportunity! NIJ seeks a social science researcher with experience
partnering with law enforcement to lead a groundbreaking new initiative

*Partner with NIJ and law enforcement agencies to build their capacity for
research and crime statistics analysis through a Detail via the
Intergovernmental Personnel Act.*
Frequently Asked Questions

We've started getting questions about this opportunity and will be posting
them on this page as we have answers.

See below for the Q&As
<http://nij.gov/about/pages/ipa-research-capacity.aspx?utm_source=http%3A%2F%2Fnij.gov%2Fabout%2Fpages%2Fipa-research-capacity.aspx&utm_medium=Eblast-GovDelivery&utm_term=ReseacherPractitionerPartnerships&utm_content=CRAjobopp-Wbpg-05052916&utm_campaign=AdHoc#faqs>
.

NIJ is looking for a social science researcher with a commitment to
partnering with law enforcement to produce applicable, impactful research
and analysis that addresses the field’s highest priority needs and advances
policy and practice. The selected applicant will manage NIJ’s newest effort
to partner with interested law enforcement agencies to identify their
in-house capacity for research and analysis, review data collection and
availability, and work with research-minded officers to design
quasi-experimental projects.

The ultimate goal of this project is to empower law enforcement agencies to
address many of their own high-priority research questions and analytic
needs in-house and improve their ability to both generate data and consume
research results. This IPA position will serve as the Chief Research
Advisor, coordinating a small team of research consultants to support the
project and facilitating the development of law enforcement capacity
through regular meetings with partner agency leadership and staff.

This job is a temporary, two-year detail through the Intergovernmental
Personnel Act (IPA), with the possibility to renew for one additional year.
NIJ will accept applications until *June 3, 2016*.
Eligibility

IPA details are for employees of federal, state, and local governmental
agencies; institutions of higher education; Indian tribal governments;
federally funded research and development centers; and qualified non-profit
organizations. Under the IPA provisions, applicants remain on the payroll
of their home institution, which continues to administer pay and benefits.
NIJ may consider a stipend to cover such items as local living expenses and
partial salary reimbursement.

Applicants should possess in-depth knowledge of social science research,
evaluation, and statistical methods. Specific experience in developing and
sustaining robust partnerships with law enforcement agencies in furtherance
of translational research is required. Applicants should demonstrate a
broad understanding of policing research issues and priorities, and
demonstrate instances where their research partnership resulted in
improvements to policy and practice.  Applicants should have five or more
years of experience in a position with responsibility for research and
evaluation design and analysis. Applicants must possess excellent
interpersonal, oral, and written communication skills and program/project
management skills.
Job Description

There are many concerning limitations with how policing research is
conducted in the US. There is generally a significant lag time between the
identification of research questions and the publication of results, and
the results are often not mindfully presented in a way that is accessible
to practitioners and highlights implications on policy and practice.
Further, most policing research tends to occur in larger urban agencies.
However, most law enforcement agencies in the U.S. are much smaller, with
about half employing fewer than 10 full-time officers. The transferability
and applicability of results obtained from research in much larger agencies
to these smaller agencies is often limited at best.

NIJ is committed to overcoming these limitations and empowering law
enforcement agencies to answer their own high priority research questions
and conduct their own analysis of crime statistics, particularly in light
of the many recommendations of the 21st Century Policing Task Force Report
requiring surveys, data collection, and evidence-based policies. This
detail at NIJ is an exciting opportunity to be a leader in these efforts.
First, the Chief Research Advisor will first work with NIJ, federal
partners, and law enforcement executives to scope this program and ensure
that the approach is feasible and promising. The Chief Research Advisor
will then work with agency leadership to identify their in-house capacity
for research and analysis. When in-house talent is identified, the Chief
Research Advisor, together with a small team of research consultants,
agency leadership, and research-minded officers will regularly convene to
review both data collection and availability and design quasi-experimental
projects to answer priority questions. While the officers themselves would
conduct the research, they will have open access to research consultants
and the Chief Research Advisor. The Chief Research Advisor will also work
with agency leadership to review their use of science to inform policy and
practice, and collaboratively design options for improving infusion of
science throughout.

   - Examine extant literature on effective research/practitioner
   partnerships and existing models for collaboration (both domestic and
   international) and develop white papers and strategy documents for building
   the program.
   - Collaborate with NIJ leadership, law enforcement executives and
   professional organizations, prospective federal partners, and researchers
   to develop a program framework to improve research and analytic capacity in
   law enforcement agencies and socialize the concept with the field.
   - Assist in the identification of willing partner agencies and establish
   framework for collaboration.
   - Lead inter-disciplinary team meetings between partner agency
   executives and supporting research consultants to identify in-house
   research capacity and review data collection and availability.
   - Working with agency-identified officers and research consultants,
   manage the design and implementation of quasi-experimental projects to
   answer priority research needs at the partner agencies.
   - Regularly collect information at all pilot sites, and use feedback
   from agency partners to develop a promising practices guide for law
   enforcement agencies interested in building research and analytic capacity.
   - Participate in panel discussions at research and practitioner
   conferences and symposia. Draft thought pieces and articles for
   practitioner and research audiences.
   - Advise participants in related NIJ programs (such as the Law
   Enforcement Advancing Data and Science Program) in the development and
   infusion of research in law enforcement agencies

Application Process

E-mail a résumé or curriculum vitae, references (including at least one law
enforcement executive with whom applicant has partnered for research) and a
writing sample of no more than 1,500 words to:

Maureen McGough, Policy Advisor
Office of the Director
National Institute of Justice
maureen.q.mcgough at usdoj.gov
202-305-4539

*Deadline: June 3, 2016*

The start date for the IPA positions are negotiable, although NIJ expects
applicants to be available to start on September 1, 2016 or earlier.
Direct all questions to Maureen McGough at the e-mail and telephone above.

Read the Department of Justice Equal Employment Opportunity statement (pdf,
1 page). <http://www.justice.gov/jmd/eeos/08-eeo-policy.pdf>

Federal agencies must provide reasonable accommodation to applicants with
disabilities where appropriate. Applicants requiring reasonable
accommodation for any part of the application and hiring process must
contact the hiring agency directly. Determinations on requests for
reasonable accommodation will be made on a case-by-case basis.
Questions and Answers About this Opportunity

*Q:* *When can applicants expect to hear back from NIJ?*

*A:* Applicants will hear in late-June or early-July whether they have been
selected to be interviewed for the position.

*Q:* *Must this position be based in DC?*

*A:* We will have a strong preference for a candidate able to be DC-based,
but are open to negotiation for an exceptional candidate who is unable to
do so.

*Q:* *Is this full time and if so what is the salary?*

*A:* The position would be full time, and salary will be commensurate with
experience.

*Q:* *How does an IPA work?*

*A:* Typically, IPA’s are on a reimbursable basis, where NIJ would be
paying an individual’s home institution, and the home institution would
continue to pay the individual’s salary.



-- 
Leora Lawton PhD
Executive Director
Berkeley Population Center
350K Barrows Hall
(of) 510-643-1270
(m) 510-928-7572
www.popcenter.berkeley.edu
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://lists.demog.berkeley.edu/pipermail/jobs/attachments/20160522/356995d2/attachment.html>