Careers
About Public Policy Associates, Inc.
Serving clients throughout the United States, Public Policy Associates provides high-caliber, thoughtful policy research that results in strategies of value in the real world. Clients include public agencies at the federal, state, and local level; private foundations such as Ford Foundation, C. S. Mott Foundation, JEHT Foundation, and W.K. Kellogg Foundation; and other nonprofit organizations.
Our areas of focus include workforce, education, and economic policy; health, human services and philanthropy; corrections policy; and natural resources. The work includes long-term, multisite evaluations; policy research; and policy-development projects. Often, clients value most the strategic consultation that accompanies other products.
Currently, we are conducting a six-year national evaluation for the Ford Foundation; assisting the State of Michigan with redevelopment of its workforce and economic development strategy; helping to shape the Michigan Prisoner ReEntry Initiative; assessing the use of technology in education; conducting a meta-evaluation of demonstration projects for the U.S. Department of Labor; evaluating several philanthropic initiatives; and carrying out a variety of other interesting and important projects.
PPA is an equal opportunity employer and affirmatively encourages applications from under-represented minorities. For much more information about PPA, click here.
All applicants are required to complete the PPA general application and submit it in hard copy form.
PPA Research Associate:
Crime, Delinquency, and Corrections Research and Policy
Public Policy Associates, Incorporated (PPA) is seeking a full-time Research Associate to assist with statewide research and policy projects in the areas of crime, delinquency, and corrections. The Research Associate will be responsible for taking the lead in developing and writing policy driven issue briefs on the Michigan Prisoner ReEntry Initiative; assisting in the collection, inputting, formatting, and reporting of juvenile justice data for the purposes of crime and disproportionate minority contact analysis; and assisting local communities with the coordination of data collection among juvenile justice agencies. All work products will be used for research and policy purposes. The Research Associate will be working with the Crime, Delinquency, and Corrections Project Manager and other members of the Crime, Delinquency, and Corrections Research team to provide reports, data, and other information for client reporting.
RELATIONSHIPS:
- Reports to the Director of the Health, Human Services, and Philanthropy Business Group
- Works directly for Project Managers in the Health, Human Services, and Philanthropy Business Group and with other researchers and assistants in the Health, Human Services, and Philanthropy Business Group. The Criminal Justice team is part of this group.
MAJOR RESPONSIBILITIES/DUTIES:
Duties are generally conducted between normal business hours, but may include additional evening and weekend hours.
Report Writing
- Responsible for conducting research and interviews to produce up to date public education and outreach materials that inform the public of the status of the Michigan Prisoner ReEntry Initiative; materials include PowerPoint presentations, issue briefs, electronic newsletters, and a Web site.
- Responsible for developing articles that can be submitted to media outlets to educate the public on the status of the Michigan Prisoner ReEntry Initiative.
Data Collection
- Administers internal and external data-collection instruments including one-on-one interviews, telephone interviews, printed surveys, electronic surveys (Internet), and focus groups.
- Assists in the developing, editing, and validation of surveys; scanning of completed surveys; coding of responses; keying of data; printing; and compilation of surveys.
- Assists in conducting site visits to institutional facilities to collect quantitative and qualitative data, observe programs, and assess program fidelity.
- Assists in the import of data from statewide databases into analysis software.
- Assists Project Managers with data entry, table development, and figure development for the purpose of updating existing reports as well as the development of new reports.
- Assists Project Managers with preparation and editing of spreadsheets and reports.
- Assists Project Managers with the development of site visit and other reports.
REQUIREMENTS/QUALIFICATIONS:
- Master’s degree (doctorate preferred) and/or equivalent experience in juvenile delinquency, crime, corrections, or related area.
- Experience working in a PC environment and proficient in word processing, spreadsheet, and data analysis software applications.
- Experience conducting field research to collect quantitative and qualitative data in institutional settings.
- Experience coding, entering, and analyzing quantitative data sets.
- Proficient in the use of Microsoft Word, Excel, and SPSS.
- Experienced writer who can multitask and meet critical deadlines.
- A criminal background check will be required.
SALARY:
Commensurate with education and experience.
SEND RESUME, SALARY REQUIREMENT, AND A WRITING SAMPLE TO:
Virginia M. Orabone
Director of Business Management
Public Policy Associates, Inc.
119 Pere Marquette Drive, Suite 1C
Lansing, MI 48912
E-mail responses may be sent to vorabone@publicpolicy.com
For more information, please visit our website at www.publicpolicy.com
Two positions available immediately:
Research Associate
Senior Research Associate/Project Manager
Due to rapid growth of our company, we have an immediate need to expand our research staff. Information about our company and the requirements of the positions are provided below.
About PPA
Serving clients throughout the United States, Public Policy Associates, Inc. (PPA) provides high-caliber, thoughtful policy research that results in strategies of value in the real world. Clients include public agencies at the federal, state, and local level; private foundations such as Ford, Mott, and Kellogg, and other nonprofit organizations.
Career opportunities are available in PPA’s Education, Workforce, and Economic Development Group (EWED). The work includes long-term, multi-site evaluations; studies of policy innovations; program development projects, and strategic consultation. Examples of current projects include:
- WIRED: This four-year study examines WIRED, a major national policy initiative of the U.S. Department of Labor. The study will focus on 26 WIRED regions from across the United States as they seek to transform regional workforce, education, and economic development systems in order to compete successfully in the new knowledge-based economy.
- Community Revitalization: We are working on several projects that support the efforts of the Michigan State Housing Development Authority to revitalize urban areas across the state and to support local efforts to end homelessness.
- Efforts to improve student achievement: We are entering the second year of a contract with the Michigan Department of Education to conduct a statewide evaluation of Supplemental Education Services. This study includes a considerable amount of interaction with school districts, parents, and organizations that provide tutoring services to eligible students.
This is a small sampling of our current work. Additional information about these and other projects is available on our website: www.publicpolicy.com.
Research Positions
We are seeking a Research Associate and a Senior Research Associate or Project Manager to join our staff on a full-time basis. The successful candidates will bring an array of skills to their work.
Requirements for Research Associate
- Be a self-starter
- Have a passion for public policy
- Have formal training and prior hands-on experience with SPSS and/or qualitative research methods
- Have an interest in using research skills to investigate a broad range of public policy topics
- Have or eager to develop expertise in multiple public policy areas associated with education, workforce, and economic development
- Have the ability to present findings in clear, concise, and insightful written reports
- Be well-organized and detail-oriented
- Be comfortable working on several different projects simultaneously
- Take deep personal responsibility for quality of work products
- Desire a work environment that is collegial, stimulating, and fun
- Master’s degree in a related field (sociology, education, history, political science, public administration, etc.)
- At least 2-3 years of professional experience
Requirements for Senior Research Associate/Project Manager
- Prior experience using multiple research methods to study public policy topics
- Have formal training and prior experience using SPSS and other data analysis tools
- Prior experience managing research teams
- Ability to synthesize data from multiple data streams
- Ability to write clear, concise, and insightful written reports
- Oral presentation skills
- Expertise in at least one public policy area associated with education, workforce, and economic development
- Interest in expanding existing expertise and developing new and different areas of knowledge
- Be well-organized and detail-oriented
- Be comfortable working on several different projects simultaneously
- Take deep personal responsibility for quality of work products
- Desire a work environment that is collegial, stimulating, and fun
- Master's degree in a related field (sociology, education, history, political science, public administration, etc.) required. Doctorate strongly preferred.
- At least 5 years of professional experience.
- Ability to travel within the U.S.
Compensation: PPA provides a competitive salary and benefit package.
Please send cover letter, resume, writing sample, and availability/possible start date to:
Nancy Hewat, Ph.D.,
Director, Education, Workforce, and Economic Development Group
Public Policy Associates, Inc.,
119 Pere Marquette Drive, Suite 1-C,
Lansing, Michigan 48912-1231
or e-mail to: hewatn@publicpolicy.com.
No Phone Calls Please
All researchers at PPA play a critical role in the success of projects and of the firm. They must take deep, personal responsibility for their work and play proactive roles in shaping their day-to-day work. Perhaps most important, they have a passion for public policy and enjoy working on highly collaborative project teams.
Our work requires strong quantitative research skills. This means a high level of competence working with large-scale, complex databases and conducting data analyses in SPSS. Our work also includes significant qualitative research, so understanding of methods such as focus groups, key informant interviews, observation, and case studies is very relevant. It is rare that a PPA project includes only quantitative or qualitative research, as we find the richest results to come from a thoughtful blending of the two.
Researchers at PPA must be excellent thinkers, writers, and presenters:
| < | Since much of our work requires synthesis of data from multiple sources to create new insight and meaning, we need research associates who are capable of seeing the connections between apparently unrelated facts, who can quickly come to understand the needs and interests of our clients better than they do, who constantly surprise themselves and their colleagues with their new ideas and understanding of old ones. | |
| < | Most of PPA’s products are written documents. We constantly produce memos, reports, and summaries for clients, and that work must be crystal clear, powerful, and well-organized. Our clients dread jargon, as well they should, since it tends to obscure rather than reveal meaning. PPA researchers must engage readers in their writing, not simply recount the facts. | |
| < | We interact with clients and others constantly, and those interactions include formal and informal presentations of what we are learning or of work we propose to do. As with our writing, our presentations must communicate effectively with our audiences. In these presentations, we frequently use PowerPoint software, so a working knowledge of that application is useful. |
Every person at PPA contributes to development of new business, and research associates play an important role. Research associates help senior staff to research those project ideas and develop them into marketable products. They also conduct background research to enrich our proposals in response to competitive solicitations. Senior research associates play leadership roles in project conception and development.
The education and credentials of our entire staff is an important ingredient in our competitiveness, so we require research associates to have at least a master’s degree (doctorate preferred) in a discipline related to our work and three years of relevant experience. We require senior research associates to have similar educational credentials, but at least five years of relevant experience. An individual with exceptional experience and capabilities who lacks the requisite credentials may be considered for a research assistant position while continuing work toward a needed degree.
119
Pere Marquette Drive • Lansing, MI 48912
(517) 485-4477 - Phone • (517) 485-4488 - Fax