Data Management Specialist

The Equity Center at the University of Virginia (UVA) is seeking a Data Management Specialist as part of the launch of an important initiative at UVA to study and reduce gun violence in the broader Charlottesville area.

The Equity Center resides in the Karsh Institute of Democracy and this Data Management Specialist position will work with researchers and partners at UVA and in the Charlottesville community to build on a research-practice partnership to understand the problem of gun violence and assess solutions within our local context. The Data Management Specialist will (1) help document local sources of data, identify potential for integrating data across sources, and evaluate data gaps; (2) work with community partners and UVA researchers on procedures for data sharing and governance and collaborate with impacted communities to ensure ethical data use; (3) evaluate alternatives for and contribute to the creation of resources, workflows, and infrastructure to support data-driven interventions and research to reduce gun violence.

The University of Virginia’s Karsh Institute of Democracy is dedicated to a future in which democracy’s aspirations and reality are aligned. We work tirelessly to understand, defend, and invigorate the institutions, practices, and cultural underpinnings that are the foundations of democracy. Through robust interdisciplinary scholarship, research and teaching, and vibrant programs and partnerships designed to engage the public and influence policy agendas, we are shaping a thriving democratic future.

The Karsh Institute’s Equity Center was founded in 2019 to ensure that the University of Virginia could serve not only as an anchor institution, but also an authentic community resource and collaborative partner in local efforts to redress inequity. The Equity Center seeks to strengthen the way UVA interacts with members of the surrounding community by focusing on mutual respect, youth power, and community-based research.

This position will be primarily involved in data management and data stewardship and report to Michele Claibourn, Director of Equitable Analysis at The Equity Center, and will work collaboratively with the equitable analysis team. Gun violence is a problem of public and civic health, and its solutions need to combine comprehension and intervention. The position will be part of a broader effort that seeks to make UVA and Charlottesville a place to take action locally while nurturing a national conversation about what localities can do to confront the problem.

Job Responsibilities:

Document Data

• Support and contribute to the research and administrative activities around the initiative to reduce gun violence.
• Document relevant data resources held by community partners and in publicly available sources, prepare a data inventory, metadata, and dictionary resources to inform the initiative.

Data Sharing

• Work collaboratively with members of the Equity Center, the UVA Karsh Institute, UVA researchers, the President's Council on Community Partnership and partners throughout the community focused on improving community health and safety.
• Guide the development of data sharing agreements with community data holders, and collaboratively create policies around data governance, protection, access, and use with data owners, data users, and communities captured in the data.

Develop Resources and Workflows

• Advise on and design systems around data infrastructure and workflows; manage processes around access, data transfer and storage, and resource organization.
• Contribute to background research as well as data preparation, integration, analysis, and visualization as work progresses.
• Prepare documentation, technical reports, and project briefs for both internal and external stakeholders.

Minimum qualifications:

• Bachelor's degree with at least six years of relevant experience.
• Master’s degree with at least two years of relevant experience.

Required qualifications:

• Knowledge of key data management concepts, frameworks, and tools, including documentation standards, data formats, and metadata.
• Understanding of and commitment to following best practices with regard to data privacy and sharing, along with the legal and ethical questions related to use and sharing of data.
• Experience with database management, schema and querying.
• Familiarity with data integration and data engineering principles, how different data systems could be coordinated and connected with each other, including building the infrastructure to make those connection