Senior Research Associate, Incarceration and Inequality Project (Fixed-Term)

Who we are:

The Vera Institute of Justice is powered by hundreds of advocates, researchers, and policy experts working to transform the criminal legal and immigration systems until they’re fair for all. Founded in 1961 to advocate for alternatives to money bail in New York City, Vera is now a national organization that partners with impacted communities and government leaders for change. We develop just, antiracist solutions so that money doesn’t determine freedom; fewer people are in jails, prisons, and immigration detention; and everyone is treated with dignity. For more information, visit vera.org.

Vera has a staff of 230 people, is headquartered in Brooklyn, New York and has offices in Washington, D.C., Los Angeles, and New Orleans. We are an equal opportunity employer with a commitment to diversity in the workplace. We expect our staff to embody respect, independence, collaboration, commitment, anti-racism, and equity—both in our outward-facing work and the internal culture of our workplace. We value a range of experiences in people’s educational backgrounds and encourage people who have been directly impacted by the criminal justice system to apply.

About the team:

Involvement in the criminal legal system has a profound and persistent impact on the economic well-being of people and their loved ones. People of color, and particularly Black Americans, are incarcerated at much higher rates than their white counterparts and as a result bear the brunt of the economic impact of incarceration, further exacerbating longstanding racial disparities in income and economic opportunity.  However, despite these disparate population-level and intergenerational effects, there is a lack of evidence about the places and demographic groups that are most directly affected. 

The Vera Institute of Justice is leading an initiative to address this gap, by highlighting the nexus of incarceration and poverty as a national research and policy priority. Vera’s research, data science and communications teams are constructing datasets that describe the connections between incarceration and economic outcomes; developing an online visualization tool that can be used by wide-ranging audiences to elucidate these connections; conducting research to inform policy and practice; and implementing a strategic communications campaign, with the goal of increasing awareness of incarceration as a driver of poverty and income/wealth disparities. 

About the role:

Vera is seeking a Senior Research Associate to join a multidisciplinary project on the economic impacts of incarceration. The SRA will work as part of a team focused on compiling and deploying national datasets to describe the relationship between incarceration in the United States and the economic wellbeing of communities. This role is for a fixed, 15-month term. This position would suit an experienced researcher with an interest in using primarily quantitative methods to address applied, policy-related research questions.

The SRA will work as part of a team producing research on the economic impacts of mass incarceration in the United States. They will partner with Vera researchers, data scientists and communications staff to identify research questions, and conduct analysis that leverages IIPs national dataset with a focus on real-world impact. The SRA will be involved with all stages of the research, from developing research designs, conducting analysis, writing, and presenting findings; with a primary focus on research design, analysis, and reporting. This position would suit researchers with a background in economics, demography, sociology, or a related social science. Applicants with applied research experience/non-academic backgrounds are encouraged to apply, as are candidates with direct experience of criminal legal system involvement. 

The position reports to the IIP Project Director. 

What you'll do:

Research design and analysis 

• Work with other members of the team to develop and implement research designs and analysis plans
• Serve as lead researcher on discrete research plans and activities
• Conduct exploratory analysis to identify trends and inform in-depth research
• Co-lead descriptive and causal analysis of administrative datasets to identify spatial and temporal trends
• Conduct literature reviews
• Liaise with policy and academic researchers, data partners, and project consultants
• Perform code review, robustness checks, and other quality assurance activities