WIDA Assistant Director of Research

Job Summary:

The Assistant Director of Research position is located within the WIDA Educator Learning, Research, and Practice (ELRP) department and will report to the Chief Educator Learning Officer (CELO). This position will be responsible for leading the research agenda within WIDA's ELRP department and contributing to the larger WIDA research agenda. In addition, the Assistant Director will lead a team of cross-functional researchers, represent research priorities as part of the department's leadership team, and conduct research focused on but not limited to the following topics or categories: implementation research, efficacy research, product research, and grants/special projects.

WIDA values linguistic and cultural diversity both as an end and a means for success in the field of education. As such, we strongly encourage applications from a diverse pool of candidates. For more information on WIDA's Mission and Values, please visit https://wida.wisc.edu/about/mission-history. 

Responsibilities:

Plans and leads operational, outreach, and promotional activities of a research program and serves as a subject matter expert.

• 30% Plans and directs the day-to-day operational activities of one or multiple research programs or units according to established research objectives in alignment with strategic plans and initiatives
• 15% Assists in the development, coordination, and facilitation of trainings and workshops for internal and external audiences to disseminate research program developments and information
• 10% Plans, develops, and implements processes and protocols to support research aims
• 10% Exercises supervisory authority, including hiring, transferring, suspending, promoting, managing conduct and performance, discharging, assigning, rewarding, disciplining, and/or approving hours worked of at least 2.0 full-time equivalent (FTE) employees
• 25% Serves as a unit liaison and subject matter expert among internal and external stakeholder groups, collaborates across disciplines and functional areas, provides program information, and promotes the accomplishments and developments of scholars and research initiatives
• 5% Monitors program budget(s) and approves unit expenditures
• 5% Develops policies, procedures, and institutional agreements on behalf of the program

Institutional Statement on Diversity:

Diversity is a source of strength, creativity, and innovation for UW-Madison. We value the contributions of each person and respect the profound ways their identity, culture, background, experience, status, abilities, and opinion enrich the university community. We commit ourselves to the pursuit of excellence in teaching, research, outreach, and diversity as inextricably linked goals.

The University of Wisconsin-Madison fulfills its public mission by creating a welcoming and inclusive community for people from every background - people who as students, faculty, and staff serve Wisconsin and the world.

For more information on diversity and inclusion on campus, please visit: Diversity and Inclusion

Education:

Required
Master's Degree
Field of Education.

Preferred
PhD

Qualifications:

Required
* Minimum of 5 years of experience designing and leading the implementation of a research agenda.
* Minimum of 3 years of experience researching topics related to K-12 education.
* Demonstrated knowledge of the field of second language acquisition including the use of English language proficiency (ELP) standards; the role of academic language in content learning, and research-based instructional practices.
* Experience in the development of organizational systems, on-going strategic planning, administration, and management of projects, deadlines, and budgets.
* Experience supervising and coaching a team and contributing to strategic planning.
* Experience writing scientific papers and grant proposals in the areas of language acquisition, educator practice, and educational policy & leadership.
* Experience directing product/program evaluation as well as qualitative and quantitative research.
* Superior writing, communication and presentation skills.

Preferred
* Familiarity with the WIDA ELP Assessment system, which includes ELP standards, assessments and professional learning.
* Experience working with multilingual learners (MLLs).
* Direct experience supervising a team of researchers.
* Multilingual or bilingual/biliterate in Spanish.

Work Type:

Full Time: 100%

Working fully remote is an option for this position within the United States (working remotely internationally is not an option). Requests to work remotely would need to be reviewed based on the UW and School of Education (SoE) remote work policies and go through the SoE implementation process. To learn more about these policies, visit https://businessoffice.education.wisc.edu/human-resources/remote-work/. 

Appointment Type, Duration:

Ongoing/Renewable

Salary:

Minimum $100,000 ANNUAL (12 months)
Depending on Qualifications
This position offers a comprehensive benefits package, including generous paid time off, competitively priced health/dental/vision/life insurance, tax-advantaged savings accounts, and participation in the nationally recognized Wisconsin Retirement System (WRS) pension fund. For a summary of benefits, please visit: https://hr.wisc.edu/benefits/  https://www.wisconsin.edu/ohrwd/benefits/download/fasl.pdf. 

Additional Information:

What is WIDA? For over 20 years, WIDA has provided a trusted, comprehensive approach to supporting, teaching, and assessing multilingual learners. We are an educational services organization that advances language development and academic achievement for multilingual children in early childhood and grades K-12. In short, we provide educators around the world with high-quality language standards, assessments, professional learning, and research. We are proud to be a part of the Wisconsin Center for Education Research (WCER) within UW-Madison's nationally ranked School of Education. Visit https://wida.wisc.edu/about/careers and watch our Introduction to WIDA video to see why WIDA is an incredible place to work!

The Wisconsin Center for Education Research (WCER), established in 1964, is one of the first, most productive, and largest university-based education research and development centers in the world. WCER's researchers and staff work to make teaching and learning as effective as possible for all ages and all people. WCER's mission is to improve educational outcomes for diverse student populations, impact education practice positively and foster collaborations among academic disciplines and practitioners. To this end, our center helps scholars and practitioners develop, submit, conduct, and share grant-funded education research.

WCER's Commitment to Diversity, Equity & Inclusion:
Diversity is a source of strength, creativity, and innovation for UW-Madison and The Wisconsin Center for Education Research (WCER). Individual differences and group diversity inspire creative and equitable outcomes. WCER actively affirms values and seeks to increase diversity in our everyday interactions, practices, and policies.

For more information and news about our center, please go to https://wcer.wisc.edu/. 

If you need to request an accommodation because of a disability during the recruitment process, please email education-HR.DDR@education.wisc.edu,  and one of our Division Disability Representatives will contact you. More information can also be found at https://employeedisabilities.wisc.edu/disability-accommodation-information-for-applicants/. 

How to Apply:

To apply for this position, you will be required to submit:
- A cover letter describing how your experience and qualifications meet the requirements of this position.
- A current resume or CV.
- A list of at least three professional references, including contact information.

Contact:

Kelly Krahenbuhl
humanresources@wida.us
Relay Access (WTRS): 7-1-1. See RELAY_SERVICE for further information.

Official Title:

Research Program Manager(RE046)

Department(s):

A17-SCHOOL OF EDUCATION/WCER

Employment Class:

Academic Staff-Renewable

Job Number:

304355-AS

 

The University of Wisconsin-Madison is an Equal Opportunity and Affirmative Action Employer.

Qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to, including but not limited to, race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, age, pregnancy, disability, or status as a protected veteran and other bases as defined by federal regulations and UW System policies. We promote excellence through diversity and encourage all qualified individuals to apply. For more information regarding applicant and employee rights and to view federal and state required postings, click here

If you need to request an accommodation because of a disability, you can find information about how to make a request at the following website: https://employeedisabilities.wisc.edu/disability-accommodation-information-for-applicants/

Employment may require a criminal background check. It may also require you and your references to answer questions regarding sexual violence and sexual harassment.

The University of Wisconsin System will not reveal the identities of applicants who request confidentiality in writing, except that the identity of the successful candidate will be released. See Wis. Stat. sec. 19.36(7).

The Annual Security and Fire Safety Report contains current campus safety and disciplinary policies, crime statistics for the previous 3 calendar years, and on-campus student housing fire safety policies and fire statistics for the previous 3 calendar years. UW-Madison will provide a paper copy upon request; please contact the University of Wisconsin Police Department. Apply