Data Manager

School of Medicine

Established in 1930, Duke University School of Medicine is the youngest of the nation's top medical schools. Ranked sixth among medical schools in the nation, the School takes pride in being an inclusive community of outstanding learners, investigators, clinicians, and staff where interdisciplinary collaboration is embraced and great ideas accelerate translation of fundamental scientific discoveries to improve human health locally and around the globe. Composed of more than 2,600 faculty physicians and researchers, nearly 2,000 students, and more than 6,200 staff, the Duke University School of Medicine along with the Duke University School of Nursing, and Duke University Health System comprise Duke Health, a world-class academic medical center. The Health System encompasses Duke University Hospital, Duke Regional Hospital, Duke Raleigh Hospital, Duke Health Integrated Practice, Duke Primary Care, Duke Home Care and Hospice, Duke Health and Wellness, and multiple affiliations.

Organizational Overview

As part of the Duke University Department of Population Health Sciences, it is the mission of the Bellwether Collaborative for Health Justice to shine a light on how mass incarceration drives inequality in the US and impacts the social determinants of health at the individual and community levels. We are an interdisciplinary research team, led by Dr. Lauren Brinkley-Rubinstein. Our work draws on the expertise of justice-involved persons, corrections staff, and community stakeholders to inform innovative research that aims to eliminate health disparities, understand and address the social determinants of health of justice-involved persons, and contribute to policy change in the areas of criminal justice reform and mass incarceration.

Project Overview 

The number of people incarcerated in the United States is estimated to be around 2.1 million people.  In terms of population, the total incarcerated population would rank among the five largest cities in the United States. Further, based on our best understanding of the number of people incarcerated at any given time in America, there are more incarcerated people in this country than residents in Chicago, Houston, or Philadelphia. And including individuals cycling through jails — nearly 11 million annually — the total of the incarcerated population would outrank every city in this Nation.  

Yet, despite their staggering population size, incarcerated people are largely invisible, and there is very little current information available relevant to health. In response to the overwhelming need for timely, quality data, we launched the Third City Project to locate and analyze data on health concerns and conditions among people who are incarcerated by leveraging publicly available data in innovative and accessible ways.

The Third City Project promotes the well-being of people and communities impacted by the criminal legal system by shining a light on health data behind the walls. We address data through a public health lens, center the experiences of people who are incarcerated, and produce data that is accessible, accurate, and actionable.

Position Description:  The hired candidate will join the Third City Project as a Data Manager. In this role, the Data Manager will work closely with project leadership to provide oversight on all aspects of data collection, management, cleaning, validation, and analysis. They will provide supervision to project staff and undergraduates and lead the development of study documentation SOPs, and data quality assurances. The hired candidate will contribute to data analyses and will have significant opportunity to the development and dissemination of scholarly products to diverse audiences (stakeholders, community members, policy makers, researchers, etc.).

Preferred Qualifications: Experience with quantitative data collection, data visualization, data analyses using statistical or other software (e.g. R, Python), coding, and web design strongly preferred. We strongly encourage individuals who have been personally impacted by the criminal legal system, or those with professional experience and/or interest in working on behalf of individuals impacted by the criminal legal system, to apply.

Required Documents: Applicants should submit a resume/CV, references, and a cover letter. In their cover letter, applicants should apply to the following prompts:

1. Describe any meaningful research experience or training you have had.

2. Describe any datasets you have worked with, what your role was working with that data, and your level of experience with the tools and statistical / programming languages used.

3. Describe any personal or professional experience you’ve had with individuals affected by the criminal legal system. If you haven’t had any, please tell us why you’re interested in joining a project that focuses on this population.

Position Responsibilities:

Operations:

• The hired candidate will work with Dr. Brinkley-Rubinstein and The BCJH regulatory coordinator to identify when research-related agreements are required for their project. They will work with appropriate Duke offices, such as the Office of Research Contracts to establish contracts and agreements on behalf of the study team (example: data use agreements, sub-award contracts, etc.).

• The hired candidate will demonstrate a working knowledge of regulatory and institutional policies and will provide appropriate training to their study team to ensure project compliance. They will also support the development of SOPs for their project and provide clear regulatory expectations to staff and students contributing to project activities.

• The hired candidate will take a leadership role in managing project meeting including identifying priorities, preparing and distributing agendas, running meetings, creating and distributing minutes, and delegating responsibilities.

Ethics:

• The hired candidate will monitor study activities for adverse events. They will ensure timely reporting to Dr. Brinkley-Rubinstein and required parties (e.g., IRB, Data and Safety Monitoring Board, Funders, etc.).

• The hired candidate will be responsible for developing and submitting IRB protocols.

• The hired candidate will  prepare and submit regulatory and safety documentation to sponsors and other agencies.

Data:

• The hired candidate will work closely with project leadership to manage all aspects of data collection, management, cleaning, and validation.

• The hired candidate will develop data management workflows and SOPs. They will also train research staff in data collection protocols and provide supervision to research staff.

• The hired candidate will provide  routine data oversight and quality checks to ensure consistency with study protocols and federal and institutional requirements.

• The hired candidate will ensure that all members of the study team adhere to date security protocols and will identify and escalate data management issues appropriately.

Science:

• The hired candidate will have the opportunity contribute meaningfully to the development of grant submissions and funding opportunities.

• The hired candidate will work closely with Dr. Brinkley-Rubinstein to develop research protocols consistent with best research practices.  

• The hired candidate will have significant opportunities to contribute to the development of scholarly products, including leading presentations, creating academic posters, serving as an author on manuscripts, etc. The hired candidate will also contribute to the distribution of study findings to non-scientific audiences (example: blog posts, white papers, stakeholders, etc.)

Study and Site Management:

• The hired candidate will be responsible for maintaining research materials, software licenses, supplies, and equipment.

• The hired candidate will work closely with Dr. Brinkley-Rubinstein to prepare the study for closeout (example: consolidating materials, returning supplies, completing sponsor reports, etc.).

Leadership:

• The hired candidate will have significant opportunity for professional development. They will work closely with their supervisor and Dr. Brinkley-Rubinstein to identify and facilitate training opportunities for themselves, students, and other members of the study team.

• The hired candidate will stay up-to-date with research best practices by attending talks, trainings, and workshops. They will also identify opportunities for members of their team to gain content expertise.

• The hired candidate will serve as a representative for the research team and participate in committees or workgroups to disseminate study findings and research best practices. 

• The hired candidate will be a strong and effective communicator who must be able to work closely, and successfully, with individuals from diverse backgrounds and trainings.

• The hired candidate will be aware of any organizational issues. If necessary, they will escalate them to the appropriate personnel.

Diversity Statements:

The Department of Population Health Sciences aspires to create a community built on collaboration, innovation, creativity, equity, and inclusivity of others without biases or prejudice of any kind. Our collective success depends on a robust exchange of ideas - an exchange that is best when the rich diversity of our perspectives, backgrounds, and experiences flourishes. To achieve this exchange, we are committed to diversity in the staff and faculty we hire, the policies we create, and the decisions we make.

In the Bellwether Collaborative for Health Justice, we look for a diverse pool of applicants including those from historically marginalized groups —people with incarceration histories, people with disabilities, women, people who are lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender,  gender non-conforming, people with lived experiences of addiction and mental health conditions, people of color, first and second generation college students, first and second generation immigrants, veterans, and people from different socioeconomic backgrounds. 

Minimum Qualifications

Education

Completion of an Associate's degree

Experience

Work requires a minimum of two years of relevant research experience. A Bachelor's degree may substitute for 2 years required experience.

Duke is an Affirmative Action/Equal Opportunity Employer committed to providing employment opportunity without regard to an individual's age, color, disability, gender, gender expression, gender identity, genetic information, national origin, race, religion, sex, sexual orientation, or veteran status.

Duke aspires to create a community built on collaboration, innovation, creativity, and belonging. Our collective success depends on the robust exchange of ideas—an exchange that is best when the rich diversity of our perspectives, backgrounds, and experiences flourishes. To achieve this exchange, it is essential that all members of the community feel secure and welcome, that the contributions of all individuals are respected, and that all voices are heard. All members of our community have a responsibility to uphold these values.

Essential Physical Job Functions: Certain jobs at Duke University and Duke University Health System may include essentialjob functions that require specific physical and/or mental abilities. Additional information and provision for requests for reasonable accommodation will be provided by each hiring department.