Research Scholar/Sr. Research Scholar, Education

Child Trends is seeking a senior educational research leader to help grow and lead their portfolio of federal, state, and philanthropic work in K12 and postsecondary education. The role involves leading research and evaluation business development efforts, serving in senior roles on awarded projects, and building relationships with various stakeholders in the education field.

Responsibilities:

• Lead or co-lead education research and evaluation business development efforts, including opportunity shaping, technical approach development, partner strategy, and proposal writing for NSF, IES, and state and philanthropic funders
• Serve in senior roles on awarded projects, such as principal investigator, project director, senior advisor, or subject matter expert
• Provide deep education expertise to strengthen research design and methodology, project management, product development, and funder and partner engagement
• Build and maintain strong relationships with federal, state and philanthropic funders, research partners, state and local education agencies, and leaders in the education field
• Mentor and support staff contributing to education projects and proposals
• Help identify and pursue new opportunities aligned with Child Trends’ mission and education strategy
• Contribute to thought leadership through presentations, publications, briefs, and other dissemination activities

Requirements:

• Deep expertise in education research and evaluation, with at least 8 years of relevant experience in applied research, evaluation and program leadership
• Demonstrated success leading competitive education research and evaluation funding, including as PI or Task Lead on awards from NSF, IES, and/or state and philanthropic partners
• Strong track record contributing to competitive proposals through technical writing, capture strategy, partnership development, or related activities
• Advanced degree in a relevant field (e.g., Education, Public Policy, Economics, Sociology), or equivalent combination of education and substantial senior-level experience
• Expertise in one or more of the following areas: school readiness, language & literacy, postsecondary success, AI in education, and the educator workforce
• Excellent writing, presentation, and collaboration skills
• Experience as a Principal Investigator on an IES or NSF-funded research project
• What Works Clearinghouse (WWC) certification in Group Design
• Experience working collaboratively with state and local policymakers and educators
• Experience mentoring multidisciplinary research teams