Data Analyst 1

Department

Consortium Research Usher

About The Department

As one of the first schools of social work in the United States, the Crown Family School of Social Work, Policy, and Practice has shaped the field for more than 100 years. As part of the University of Chicago, the Crown Family School shares the University's core values and distinctive intellectual culture. Crown Family School faculty, staff, and students focus on identifying solutions to complex social problems through research, training, and direct community engagement. Guided by an interdisciplinary tradition, Crown Family School scholars conduct innovative research to address interconnected social challenges such as educational inequality, health disparities, crime and violence, poverty, and child and family welfare—working at multiple scales, from individual to policy-level interventions. More than 10,000 Crown Family School graduates in the US and globally hold leadership positions in academia, at nonprofits, in business, and at governmental agencies The Crown Family School is the home of several academic centers. These include the Susan and Richard Kiphart Center for Global Health and Social Development, the Kersten Institute for Urban Education, the Center for Climate, Health and Society, the Smart Decarceration Project, and the Employment Instability, Family Well-being, and Social Policy Network (EINet). More information may be found at https://crownschool.uchicago.edu/.

The To&Through Project collaborates with educators, policymakers, and communities to significantly increase high school and post-secondary completion for under-resourced students of color in

Chicago and around the country by providing education stakeholders with research-based data on

students’ educational experiences and facilitating dialogue on its implications for adult practice.

For 35 years, the University of Chicago Consortium on School Research (UChicago Consortium), a unit of the Kersten Institute for Urban Education at the Crown Family School of Social Work, Policy, and Practice has worked to address some of the most pressing challenges in urban education. We conduct high-quality research on the practices and conditions that improve student learning, promote educational attainment, and foster equity through rigorous research. Our research informs policy and practice in Chicago Public Schools and in districts across the nation. A central part of our work is engaging with a wide range of stakeholders and fostering evidence-driven conversations about the critical issues facing schools. The UChicago Consortium is widely recognized as a national model for research-practice partnerships, combining rigorous analysis with real-world impact

For more information about the UChicago Consortium, see consortium.uchicago.edu and the To&Through Project, see toandthrough.uchicago.edu.

Job Summary

The Data Analyst I will support the work of To&Through’s Data & Research Team (DART). This role will primarily support the maintenance for and presentation of the To&Through Online Data Tool. The successful candidate will contribute to the organization’s capacity to provide quantitative data on the educational journeys of Chicago Public School students. The position requires someone with data manipulation, quantitative research, and programming skills, as well as a passion for doing meaningful work to improve schools. The Data Analyst I will be responsible for cleaning and building large-scale datasets and creating data documentation for new projects, as well as conducting detailed statistical analyses for research studies. The successful candidate will have a commitment to equity and urban education, be deeply curious, and be willing to learn new methods and topics. The Data Analyst I position requires someone who is able to handle multiple concurrent tasks and projects and work in a highly collaborative environment.

This is a grant funded position, where the primary grant end date is 5/31/2027, with an expected renewal term end date of 5/31/2030. If the grant is not renewed and/or substitute grant funding isn’t identified, the position will end in alignment with grant end dates.

Responsibilities

• Create specialized databases by merging multiple, complex data sources, including school-, student-, community-, and neighborhood-based files.
• Perform data quality assurance for data libraries, including updating documentation and improving internal processes.
• Maintain backend code processes for the To&Through Online Data Tool, including updating and uploading the data and supporting the creation of new features.
• Facilitate workshops on education research and the use of data tools for education practitioners.
• Conduct statistical analysis of large-scale databases using R, including both simple descriptive group comparisons and statistical modeling.
• Create effective displays of findings.
• Contribute to conceptualizing, designing, and planning research projects, framing resear