Research Director

Workforce and Community Education

ENLACES Research Director at National University leading research for community school initiatives. Executing research agendas and collaborating with faculty, students, and external partners.

Posted 5/22/2026full-timeRemote • 🇺🇸 United StatesLead💰 $79,930 - $120,000 per yearWebsite

About the role

Key responsibilities & impact

Develop and execute a research agenda for Full-Service Community Schools implementation centered on efficacy, outcomes, and children/family growth
Partner with National University faculty/staff to create structures for staff and graduate and undergraduate students to participate in research activities
Research and evaluate the development and delivery of programs utilizing quantitative and mixed-methods research designs
Produce research briefs, white papers, and tools to enhance user experience; and engage with other units within National University (e.g., Cause Research Institute) to enhance research efforts.
Collaborate with researchers, graduate students, and post-docs at NU Cause Research Institute, Sanford College of Education, JFK School of Psychology and Social Sciences, and School of Health Professions to co-develop a robust research agenda supporting ENLACES.
Engage in research-practice partnerships with partner districts and strategic partners to better understand ways in which innovative solutions from ENLACES are implemented.
Manage research projects with a research team (graduate students and RAs), as well as weigh variety of internal and external stakeholders, ensuring research projects stay on track and within budget.
Participate in training, coaching, and supporting graduate and undergraduate students in engaging in research projects.
Collect, assemble, and maintain datasets related services provided to children, families, and teachers through ENLACES.
Analyze data to generate evidence that can influence policy and practice
Write research reports, briefing memos, summaries of journal articles, books, blogs and news articles individually and in collaboration with other researchers and scholars (internal and external).
Present results of empirical analysis in interesting and easy to understand table and graphical formats.
Contribute to writing grants to support continuation of grant funding that supports community school initiatives.
Support the content development of RFPs
Partner with external clients and consultants to support research and evaluation.
Review content, products, and materials to ensure they align with evidence-based practices
Attend conferences and seminars as needed.
Other duties as assigned.

Requirements

What you’ll need

Doctoral degree in education, psychology, research methodology or related field with a minimum of three years of related experience required.
Five (5) years’ experience leading research projects (project director, task leads) required.
Project management and continuous improvement experience highly preferred.
Experience with data collection or evaluation in community- and school-based settings preferred.
Experience with mixed-methods research preferred.
Experience building and maintaining partner relationships preferred.
Experience with grant writing preferred.
Experience designing analyses with practice implications preferred.
Schedule flexibility is required for late afternoon, evening, and weekend events when they occur.

Benefits

Comp & perks

Comprehensive well-being benefits for you and your family

ATS Keywords

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Applicant Tracking System Keywords

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Hard Skills & Tools

mixed-methods researchquantitative researchdata analysisgrant writingproject managementdata collectionresearch designevidence-based practicesprogram evaluationresearch methodology

Soft Skills

collaborationcommunicationleadershipcoachingrelationship buildingorganizational skillsflexibilityteam managementtrainingproblem-solving

Certifications

Doctoral degree in educationDoctoral degree in psychologyDoctoral degree in research methodology