Associate Jobs in Austin, TX

Job Details

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General Notes

• This role may support fully-remote work at the discretion of the Charles A. Dana Center

Purpose

• The purpose of this role is to design and lead rigorous, high‑quality evaluations across the Dana Center’s portfolio—overseeing evaluation plans, data collection, analysis, and reporting to demonstrate program progress, impact, and outcomes. The role also strengthens organizational learning by managing evaluation operations, translating findings into actionable insights, and supporting continuous improvement, communications, and field influence in math, science, and literacy education.

Responsibilities

Evaluation Design & Research

•Designand/or oversee the design ofevaluation plans for proposals in collaboration with directors, managers, and program staff.

•Ensure methodological rigor, consistency and research integrity in impact and outcome evaluations.

Data Analysis, Synthesis & Reporting

•Lead the preparationand executionof funder deliverables and evaluation impact reports.

•Synthesize evaluation findings to demonstrate program impact, implementation fidelity, and achieved outcomes.

•Support organizational communications on evaluation.

•Generate data-sharing agreements and other materials governing evaluation, as necessary.

•Draft and/or reviewand approvedata collection protocols including surveys, interviews, focus groups, classroom or implementation observations, in addition to analysis plans, and evaluation reports.

Knowledge Management & Evaluation Operations

•Organize and maintain evaluation knowledge systems, including databases, reports, proposals, instruments, and templates.

•Develop and promote standardized evaluation processes for data collection, reporting, and proposal development.

•Manage evaluation timelines, budgets, and contracts.Developstatementsof work, and ensuring quality, rigor, and alignment withprogrammaticgoals.

•Grow and sustain a group of external evaluators, including identifying diverse expertise in K-12and postsecondarymath,science, and literacyeducation,professional learningand curriculum development.

•Oversee externalevaluators and consultants workprogressand deliverables, ensuring that deliverables are submitted in time and with high quality.

Continuous Improvement & Organizational Learning

•Collaborate with directors and program staff to review evaluation findings and facilitate sensemaking discussions.

•Support continuous improvement and rapid cycle learning by translating evidence into recommendations for program refinement.

•Participate in regular debriefs, reflection sessions, and internal convenings to strengthen a culture of learning through evaluation.

•Lead continuous improvement sessions with internal staff and external audiences.

Communications, Policy & Field Influence

•Partner with communications staff to disseminate findings through research briefs, blogs, reports, presentations, and web content.

•Contribute towhite papers and thought leadership pieces on evaluation in math,science, and literacyeducation,professional learningand curriculum development.

•Translate complex research into accessible, compelling insights for educators, policymakers, funders, and the public.

•Provide support to Dana Center Managing Director and Management in disseminating evaluation findings in policy forums, briefings, and high-visibility presentations, as appropriate.

Required Qualifications

• Master’s degree in research, evaluation, data, impact

• 5+ years experience in evaluation, impact assessment

• Knowledge of both quantitative and qualitative data collection methods

• Familiar with standard assessment tracking tools

• 3+ years experience supervising staff, leading teams or projects

• 3+ years experience managing project schedules, budgets

• Proven experience ensuring data methods follow standard research protocols

• Exceptional written and verbal skills

• Experience with continuous improvement cycles

Preferred Qualifications

• Ph.D. degree in research, evaluation, data, or impact

• Experience with math pathways or math education transformation

• Experience with big data/longitudinal datasets

Salary Range

$120,000 - $130,000

Working Conditions

• May work around standard office conditions

• Repetitive use of a keyboard at a workstation

• Use of manual dexterity

• May support fully-remote work at the discretion of the Charles A. Dana Center

Required Materials

• Resume/CV

• 3 work references with their contact information; at least one reference should be from a supervisor

• Letter of interest

Important for applicants who are NOT current university employees or contingent workers: You will be prompted to submit your resume the first time you apply, then you will be provided an option to upload a new Resume for subsequent applications. Any additional Required Materials (letter of interest, references, etc.) will be uploaded in the Application Questions section; you will be able to multi-select additional files. Before submitting your online job application, ensure that ALL Required Materials have been uploaded. Once your job application has been submitted, you cannot make changes.

Important for Current university employees and contingent workers: As a current university employee or contingent worker, you MUST apply within Workday by searching for Find UT Jobs. If you are a current University employee, log-in to Workday, navigate to your Worker Profile, click the Career link in the left hand navigation menu and then update the sections in your Professional Profile before you apply. This information will be pulled in to your application. The application is one page and you will be prompted to upload your resume. In addition, you must respond to the application questions presented to upload any additional Required Materials (letter of interest, references, etc.) that were noted above.

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Employment Eligibility:

Regular staff who have been employed in their current position for the last six continuous months are eligible for openings being recruited for through University-Wide or Open Recruiting, to include both promotional opportunities and lateral transfers. Staff who are promotion/transfer eligible may apply for positions without supervisor approval.

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Retirement Plan Eligibility:

The retirement plan for this position is Teacher Retirement System of Texas (TRS), subject to the position being at least 20 hours per week and at least 135 days in length.

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Background Checks:

A criminal history background check will be required for finalist(s) under consideration for this position.

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