Research Assistant

We are seeking a Research Assistant (RA) who will be responsible for working collaboratively with the Research Program Manager and Principal Investigator (PI) on a nationwide cohort study among transgender women in the United States and Puerto Rico. The study is called Enhanced Cohort methods for HIV Research and Epidemiology among transgender women in the United States (ENCORE). The target recruitment is 3000 transgender women.

ENCORE participants will be asked to participant in a baseline survey and HIV testing to determine eligibility. If participants are eligible, then they will be invited to participate in the study longer term with two study visits per year. Each study visit will include a 30-minute survey and home-based HIV testing. There will be two visits per year for at least 24 months. The study launched March 1, 2023.

ENCORE builds upon the team’s portfolio of transgender health research projects. The LITE Study was a four-year cohort study among transgender women in the Eastern and Southern United States. LITE Connect is a two-year study that first looked at COVID impacts among transgender and nonbinary people in the United States and Puerto Rico. The second phase of LITE Connect is currently doing a 12-month follow up with transgender women. You can learn more about these studies at www.litestudy.org and www.liteconnect.org.

The RA will work within the Center for Public Health and Human Rights in the Department of Epidemiology. Ceza Pontes, Sr. Research Program Coordinator, will be the RA’s direct supervisor. The team currently includes six RAs. Ideally the candidate will begin on or before July 15th.

Specific Duties & Responsibilities

• The RA will be responsible for phone and email coverage and participant communications, providing participant incentives go out in a timely manner, following up on delayed surveys and HIV home kits, mailing out HIV home kits, conducting interviewer-assisted consents and surveys to participants who request them, supporting the development of dissemination materials, and other tasks as needed and identified by the Research Program Manager and the PI.
• The RA will communicate directly with study participants and will answer participant questions about the study. In addition, the RA will document participant recruitment and retention using the Clinical Trial Management System (CTMS).
  
• The RA will be expected to come into the ENCORE office at the Johns Hopkins School of Public Health, Department of Epidemiology at least one day a week. The RA must follow all Johns Hopkins University COVID guidelines.

• Bachelor's Degree in related discipline.
• Additional related experience may substitute for required education, to the extent permitted by the JHU equivalency formula.

• Proficiency in English and Spanish.
• Past experience working with LGBTQ+ populations.
  

• Work a minimum of 10 hours per week.
  

• Able to work on administrative and participant facing tasks.
  

• Come into the ENCORE office at least one day per week.

Classified Title: Research Assistant 
Role/Level/Range: ACRO40/E/03/CD  
Starting Salary Range: $17.00 - $30.00 HRLY (Commensurate with experience) 
Employee group: Casual / On Call 
Schedule: Other Monday - Friday, Hours will vary 
Exempt Status: Non-Exempt 
Location: Hybrid/School of Public Health 
Department name: ​​​​​​​Epidemiology  
Personnel area: School of Public Health