Assistant Researcher

Assistant Researcher, University of Kansas

JUNIPER GARDENS CHILDREN'S PROJECT

We are seeking a full-time or half-time Assistant Researcher to work across early childhood research intervention and evaluation projects at the Juniper Gardens Children’s Project (JGCP). The Assistant Researcher in this role will assist in data collection including assessment and observation to document the implementation and effectiveness of early education practices delivered by early childhood teachers in community-based child care and early intervention and education programs. The Assistant Researcher will also participate in data collection and intervention research activities documenting teacher and child outcomes in a randomized control trial study. Collaborating partners in this research are located in the greater Kansas City area, within a 40-mile radius, as well as in rural Kansas, so the position involves a combination of in-person and remote meetings with providers. This position requires experience in infant-toddler care and/or early intervention, as well as reliable transportation and the ability to be flexible in scheduling around child-care center and provider schedules. This position also requires strong organizational, communication, and project and time management skills as evidenced in work experience. The position is at JGCP, located in downtown Kansas City, Kansas in the Children’s Campus of Kansas City building: 444 Minnesota Ave, Suite 300, Kansas City, KS 66101. Travel to child-care and early learning programs in Kansas City and surrounding communities is required. Reimbursement for local travel in addition to salary. Please note that all offers of employment are contingent upon the satisfactory completion of the background check. Continuation is contingent on satisfactory evaluation and available funding.

This position will be a hybrid of on-site work and telework as deemed by the supervisor.

Applications from members of underrepresented groups are encouraged, noting the value that differences bring to our organization, students, staff, faculty, and community.

RESPONSIBILITIES:

1. Conduct classroom observations, teacher interviews, code observations of teacher-child interaction and conduct child assessments. (40%)

2. Support implementation of professional development and coaching intervention on language promoting practices with infant-toddler teachers or early intervention providers, in collaboration with research team. (30%)

3. Conduct data entry, data checking, and data cleaning. (15%)

4. Contribute to the refinement of professional development resources and materials, including presentations, handouts, web site content, video tutorials, and social media postings (5%). 

5. Contribute to preparation of project reports, conference presentations and publications, and other dissemination efforts (10%).

REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS:

1. Bachelor’s degree in early childhood education, special education, social work, applied behavior analysis, counseling, educational psychology, psychology, speech or occupational therapy, or related field. 

2. One year experience working with early childhood settings.

3. One year experience with coaching or supporting early childhood educators.

4. Experience collaborating using video-conferencing tools such as Zoom, Skype, etc.

 Position Requirements: 

• Reliable transportation and the ability to be flexible in scheduling around school schedules are required. 

• Travel to schools within the area is required.

PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS:

1.   Master’s degree in early childhood education, special education, social work,  behavior analysis, speech, occupational therapy, psychology, or related field. 

2.   Experience conducting early childhood assessments and observations, interventions, teaching, or collaborative research in early childhood programs. 

3.   Strong written and oral communication skills as evidenced in work history.

4.   Strong organizational skills and the ability to work independently with limited supervision as evidenced in work history.

6. Experienced in the use of office productivity applications and cloud-based applications such as OneDrive, Teams, SharePoint, Google Docs, Adobe Creative Cloud suite of design and productivity tools, such as InDesign, Adobe Premiere. 

FTE: 50% or 100% (20 or 40 hours per week) 

APPLICATION DEADLINE: Review of applications will begin November 17th 2023, and continue until the position is filled.

SALARY $21.00 - $24.00 hourly, commensurate with education and experience

START DATE: December 4, 2023 or when position is filled. 

The University of Kansas prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color, ethnicity, religion, sex, national origin, age, ancestry, disability, status as a veteran, sexual orientation, marital status, parental status, retaliation, gender identity, gender expression and genetic information in the University’s programs and activities. The following persons has been designated to handle inquiries regarding the non-discrimination policies and are the Title IX Coordinators for their respective campuses: Director of the Office of Institutional Opportunity and Access, IOA@ku.edu , Room 1082, Dole Human Development Center, 1000 Sunnyside Avenue, Lawrence, KS, 66045, 785-864-6414, 711 TTY (for the Lawrence, Edwards, Parsons, Yoder, and Topeka campuses; Director, Equal Opportunity Office, Mail Stop 7004, 4330 Shawnee Mission Parkway, Fairway, KS 66205, 913-588-8011, 711 TTY (for the Wichita, Salina, and Kansas City, Kansas medical center campuses).