The Research Associate will serve as the OD2A Project Evaluator, under the supervision of ICR Executive Director and Senior Scientist, who is also the OD2A ICR site Project Director. The Research Associate is also expected to participate in research and evaluation activities on other projects, assist in grant development, and develop his/her own research agenda. The mixed method researcher will:

• Develop a good understanding of CDC requirements and procedural guidelines related to OD2A project implementation and project evaluation components.

• Conduct literature reviews to identify best practices associated with drug overdose prevention intervention services, peer navigation, and recovery coaching, as well as multi-level factors that contribute to the effectiveness of various prevention, treatment, and intervention services.

• Participate in the development of needs assessment survey and performance measure reporting instruments, in collaboration with the ICR team, the City of Hartford HHS team members, partnering health districts, and organization personnel.

• Take primary responsibility for developing the OD2A evaluation plan, conducting outcome and process evaluation, assuring implementation quality, and identifying needs for evaluation plan adjustment.

• Develop centralized online databases and user data entry interfaces for partner organizations, monitoring needs assessment and performance data collection progress and data quality, regularly conduct data cleaning and analysis, produce monthly/quarterly data reports, and provide technical assistance to partner organization data entry staff.

• Conduct and coordinate evaluation data processing, coding, analysis, interpretation, and report writing

• Develop a good understanding of the principles and procedures of complex social and health services, the applicable laws and regulations governing eligibility, and the socioeconomic problems of the service catchment areas;

• Coordinate with other health districts, to provide the most efficient and effective best practices in peer recovery services for the Greater Hartford region. Promote best practices in engagement approaches, support systems, and interventions;

• Work with other community partners, service providers, and agencies, to help enhance peer recovery navigation in the Hartford region; • Actively participate in City of Hartford Collaborative Improvement and Innovation Network (CoIIN) meetings, participate in CoIIN activities as appropriate;

• Contribute to project professional development and training development as needed, assist in the development of clinical, community, and public safety training, data collection, and generating reports;

• Participate in ICR staff meetings, organization-wide activities, and other programs as appropriate.

• Demonstrated critical thinking, creative mind, strong analytical skills, evidence of publications or potential for publications productivity.

• Minimum of two years of experience in setting up surveys or other types of data entry forms, managing and integrating data from different sources, and analyzing data. Experienced in database design and analytical software, such as Qualtrics, Access, Redcap, Atlas.ti, SPSS, SAS etc.

• Detail-orientated with strong organizational skills. Able to quickly identify errors or irregular data patterns and alert supervisors and other team members.

•Capable of summarizing descriptive and preliminary data output in written reports. Able to understand and support the integration of different forms of qualitative data into research reports. Able to lead on grant applications, public presentations, and other reporting and dissemination activities.

• Highly self-motivated with a good working attitude and the ability to accomplish multiple tasks while effectively managing time constraints. Ability to set priorities and meet deadlines in a collaborative and fast-paced work environment with minimal guidance and supervision.

•Demonstrates a consistent and high degree of professionalism, enthusiasm, autonomy, and initiative. Flexible, able to work cooperatively with project staff and collaborating organizations as a team member; ability to work independently and exercise discretion and good judgment in job functions.