Position Summary: The New York City Department of Education (DOE) school system is the largest in the country, composed of approximately 1.1 million students and 80,000+ teachers in over 1,800 schools.
The Office of Academic Policy and Systems (OAPS) is responsible for supporting New York City schools in implementing grading, programming, promotion, and graduation processes that support educational equity. OAPS creates structures, resources, and tools to support schools in reflecting on their practices in these areas, using policy, data, and systems as levers for advancing equity and minimizing bias. OAPS is part of the Office of Policy and Evaluation (OPE) under the First Deputy Chancellor. OPE is the primary source of data analysis, research, and academic policy for the DOE.
The Deputy Director, Research and Analytics plays an integral role in conducting monitoring and evaluation for OAPS’s policy portfolio; managing tools, applications, and structures for improving data quality and compliance; communicating relevant policy and process information to schools; and processing quantitative and qualitative information from key stakeholders to drive data-based decisions. Performs related work.
Reports to: Director, Research and Analytics
Direct Reports: N/A
Key Relationships: Works closely with Directors within the Office of Policy and Evaluation (OPE) and across divisions. Works frequently with Directors in the Office of Legal Services (OLS); the Division of Specialized Instruction and Student Support (DSISS); the Division of Multilingual Learners (DML); the Division of School Leadership (DSL); the Office of Student Enrollment (OSE) and the Division of School Culture, Climate, and Well-being.
Responsibilities
- Manage the implementation of quantitative data analyses of confidential student data through the use of both descriptive statistics, as well as more advanced statistical modeling related to policy implementation and student outcomes.
- Design and conduct analyses to explain and drive how academic policies can positively impact student outcomes. Advise the Director of Research and Analytics on outcomes, and make strategy and policy recommendations at both school and central levels pertaining to academic requirements, including grading, graduation, promotion, and programming policies.
- Conduct analyses to evaluate compliance with Chancellor’s Regulations, New York State Commissioner’s Regulations, and other State and local policies. Maintain a working knowledge of K-12 academic policies, including scheduling, promotion, and graduation certification.
- Prepare internal analysis reports, data visualizations, policy briefs, and presentations which may be confidential and sensitive in nature for the Directors of the Office of Academic Policy and Systems and leadership within the Office of Policy and Evaluation.
- Communicate data and action steps to field staff regarding academic data initiatives, and collect and aggregate feedback and results.
- Develop data resources and tools that allow central and field staff to effectively implement academic policies. Utilize and continuously improve automated systems and tools to support research, analysis, and data quality control.
- Support the Director in overseeing systems of organizing technical documentation, including business rules documents, project plans, queries and technical procedures, and records of decision-making.
- Manage STARS Action Items, which provide notifications to schools when academic programming is not in alignment with academic policy. Coordinate with field staff to assist schools in resolving outstanding issues.
- Develop and maintain expertise in accessing, extracting, and analyzing data from DOE source systems, including confidential student data from ATS and STARS.
- Develop project plans and lead their execution working with cross-functional stakeholders.
- Collaborate with team members to improve efficiency of analyses and data tools, ensure accuracy, and correct implementation of research and business rules.
- Serve as business owner for various projects, as needed.
Qualification Requirements:
Minimum
- A doctorate degree from an accredited college or university with specialization in an appropriate field of physical, biological, environmental or social science and one year of full-time experience in a responsible supervisory, administrative or research capacity in the appropriate field of specialization; or
- A master's degree from an accredited college or university with specialization in an appropriate field of physical, biological, environmental or social science and three years of responsible full-time research experience in the appropriate field of specialization; or
- Education and/or experience which is equivalent to "1" or "2" above. However, all candidates must have at least a master's degree in an appropriate field of specialization and at least two years of experience described in "2" above. Two years as a City Research Scientist Level I can be substituted for the experience required in "1" and "2" above.
Plus
- Proficiency with Stata, R, Python, SAS, Stata, or other statistical/data management programming languages.
Preferred
- Proficiency and experience working with SQL.
- Ability to manipulate, organize and analyze large datasets; experience gathering, analyzing and interpreting data.
- Ability to clearly communicate and document technical work, including coding methodology.
- Experience communicating research and analyses to non-researchers/analysts.
- Experience developing thoughtful and creative approaches for addressing a wide range of analytic questions.
- Ability to translate broad policy guidelines into actionable data requirements and business rules.
- Ability to collaborate with other programmers and analysts while also completing work independently.
- Ability to troubleshoot, problem-solve, and anticipate issues needing resolution by employing a clear and logical thought process for analysis and programming.
- Ability to use independent judgment to design, adapt and modify analyses and programming to the needs of specific projects.
- Ability to provide constructive feedback to others on their research and analytic work.
- Deep interest in public education and its role in advancing equity; experience or enrollment in a large urban school district
- Experience working with diverse peers and populations
- Understanding of racial equity and willingness to engage in conversations about race
- Ability to interact with and obtain feedback from school-based staff, field staff, and other constituents
- Experience collaborating with various stakeholders to gain new perspectives
- Ability to build relationships and navigate disagreement
- High standards for personal excellence, including receptiveness to feedback
- Exceptional project-management abilities; proven ability to prioritize both long- and short-term projects and initiatives
- Excellent written and verbal communication, including public speaking
- Strong attention to detail
- Proficient in Microsoft Office, including Word, Excel, and PowerPoint
Salary: $92,301 - $106,874
(Internal candidates who are selected for this position and who currently hold comparable or less senior positions within the DOE will not earn less than their current salary.)
Please include a resume and cover letter with your application.
NOTE: The filling of all positions is subject to budget availability and/or grant funding.
* New York City Residency is NOT Required *
We encourage all applicants from the New York City tri-state area to apply.