Associate Director, Research

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 240 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:

The Associate Director of Research will lead research for Vera’s Opening Doors Initiative – a national effort to expand access to housing for people with conviction histories. The initiative is pursuing state-specific campaigns for policy change, pursuing federal policy change at HUD, and developing and lifting up evidence to support these policy changes.

About the role:

The Associate Director of Research reports directly to the Initiative Director with a “dotted line” to the Initiatives’ Director of Research. In this role, the Associate Director of Research oversees staff working across a range of methodologies and multiple projects or studies, engages in sophisticated hands-on research as needed, and manages the team’s research portfolio. This position has fluency in advocacy and communications strategies and draws on their substantial expertise in the field to oversee evidence-based messaging and policy in support of big goals. They are responsible for all research products and publications coming out of their teams. Associate Directors of Research bring substantial management experience, advanced methodological skills, strong research communication skills, and experience building and leading a research team. This is a senior-level position for researchers with extensive technical expertise and substantive knowledge and experience.  

What you'll do:

Research Leadership

• Represent research on the initiative leadership team
• Work with the initiative director to develop strategies that incorporate research, participating in theory of change planning, MEL, and other activities related to the impact pipeline
• Work with the initiative director in support of annual planning and budget development, staffing plans, and fundraising
• Serve as a member of the Vera Research Leadership Team
• Ensure that researchers across the organization receive appropriate support
• Supervise, support and mentor the initiative research team
• Partner with initiative director and the research leadership team to develop staffing plans and lead recruitment and hiring
• Cultivate relationships with partner organizations
• Supervise all research work on an initiative project or team
• Provide training mentoring, and technical assistance to researchers within and across teams
• Partner with Advocacy and Communications staff to develop coordinated strategies that leverage research

Presentation and dissemination of research

• Sign off on evidence-based messaging and research within the initiative, and oversee development, writing, and editing of research publications and evidence-based messaging and products in support of initiative goals, including rapid response work 
• Act as an internal and external spokesperson/representative of the work to a range of audiences 
• Partner with advocacy and communications staff to develop coordinated strategies that leverage research

Research design and implementation

• Review IRB applications; develop and present IRB applications and ensure that research is conducted to the highest ethical standards, serving as Principal Investigator on research projects 
• Mentor early career researchers in human subjects/IRB protocols 
• Lead the initiative’s data collection and analysis

Data collection and analysis

• Lead/train/supervise others on data collection and analysis, overseeing all aspects of data management and analysis within the initiativ