Senior Director - Research & Data Science

Job Description

Job Title

Position Title: Senior Director, Research & Data Science

Location: Fisher Building, 3011 W. Grand Blvd., Detroit, MI 48202

Salary: $99,486 - $134,599

Reports to: Assistant Superintendent, Strategy, Data, and Accountability

Bargaining Unit: N/A

Benefits Eligible: Yes

Telecommuting Eligibility: Eligible for telecommuting up to 20% (one day per week)

Position Summary

The Senior Director leads the Research and Data Science department in executing rigorous, actionable research that directly improves outcomes for Detroit students. This leader ensures all research activities maintain a clear "students first" orientation, connecting analytical work to tangible improvements in teaching, learning, and student success across the district.

As a Key Member Of The Office Of Strategy, Data, And Accountability, The Senior Director Provides Strategic Leadership And Operational Oversight To

• Develop proactive, transparent annual research agendas aligned to strategic priorities and school needs
• Lead strategic research that drives district thinking on critical issues including student outcomes, program effectiveness, and return on major investments
• Build sustainable systems, standardized workflows, and technical best practices that enable high-quality, reproducible work
• Cultivate an empowered team culture where staff understand how their work impacts students and contribute their expertise to research design
• Partner with school and district leaders to translate findings into actionable insights for decision-making
• Establish research infrastructure and documented processes that create consistency and enable knowledge transfer
  
  

The Senior Director manages the Research and Data Science team and works collaboratively across the district to ensure research drives meaningful improvements for students and schools.

Minimum Qualifications

• Must possess and provide evidence of a Bachelor’s, with preferred focus in education, public administration, public policy, or related field. Master’s degree preferred.
  
  

Required Qualifications

• Minimum of three (3) years of experience designing and conducting educational research with direct connection to practice and student outcomes
• Minimum of three (2) years of experience leading effective teams and building positive team culture; experience managing research or technical analysts strongly preferred
• Deep commitment to equity and improving outcomes for students, with ability to articulate clear connections between research activities and student impact
• Strong interpersonal and coaching skills with ability to create empowering team environments; growth mindset approach with openness to feedback
• Experience developing annual research plans with clear priorities and timelines that balance proactive strategic work with responsive analyses; demonstrated ability to manage stakeholder expectations and protect team capacity
• Track record of building sustainable systems and implementing research best practices including version control, code documentation, and reproducible analysis pipelines
• Strong analytical background with understanding of applied statistics, program evaluation, and experimental design in education settings
• Proficiency in statistical software (R preferred) with focus on leading others' technical work
• Strong written and oral communication skills that enable effective collaboration with school leaders, practitioners, and both technical and non-technical audiences.
  
  

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience managing research projects of varying scope and duration, from rapid-turnaround analyses to multi-year comprehensive evaluations
• Knowledge of research ethics and legal requirements in educational research, including student data privacy and security
• Experience working in urban school district settings
  
  

Essential Functions

• Provide strategic leadership focused on student impact. Articulate a compelling vision for how research drives student outcomes and ensure research priorities align with school needs and strategic objectives.
• Collaborate with senior leaders to develop coherent research agendas. Work with practitioners and district leadership to develop research priorities aligned to the strategic plan.
• Develop and manage transparent annual research plans. Create clear year-long calendars with defined timelines and deliverables that balance responsive requests with comprehensive evaluations.
• Build and maintain sustainable research systems. Establish and document standard operating procedures, technical standards, and quality assurance protocols including version control, code documentation, and peer review.
• Lead research design and set quality standards. Maintain high standards for analysis planning, replicability, data visualization, and presentation.
• Design and support high-value analyses for decision-making. Ensure research approaches generate insights that are accessible and actionable for school and district leaders.
• Conduct and support rigorous program evaluations. Oversee evaluations that assess the impact and effectiveness of district programs and initiatives.
• Oversee research application and external reporting. Manage the district-wide research agenda and coordinate external reporting including strategic plan metrics.
• Communicate and disseminate research findings broadly. Leverage presentations, publications through SharePoint and internal systems, and other communication channels to share research insights across teams and stakeholders.
• Build and lead a high-performing, empowered team. Coach and develop staff through management that encourages analytical independence, critical thinking, and shared responsibility for outcomes.
• Partner collaboratively across the district. Work with school and district leaders to define research questions, coordinate shared work products, and manage up effectively.
• Support analytical practices across central office teams. Contribute to development and implementation of common data science principles and analytical standards across the district.
• Perform other duties as assigned by the Assistant Superintendent of Strategy, Data, and Accountability.
  
  

Security Clearance

Internal Applicants

If you are a current Detroit Public Schools Community District employee, you do not have to submit a new security clearance, unless your new role requires a different type of criminal background check.

External Applicants

In alignment with Michigan law, if you are hired to fill a position, you will be required to submit to a Detroit Public Schools Community District criminal background check. Information regarding required background checks will be shared at the point of hiring.

Method Of Application

Applicants must apply through the online application system. Only applications submitted through the online application system will be considered for any posted position and all applications require a resume to be considered.

Successful candidates are required to submit official transcript(s) at point of offer to hire. Teaching service outside of the Detroit Public Schools Community District must be verified by the applicant's prior employer(s) prior to hire. It is the applicant's responsibility to provide all documentation (including copies) as requested.

Applicants requesting assistance during the application process should contact the Office of Human Resources via email at [email protected] or phone at (313) 873-6897. DPSCD does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, disability, age, religion, Contact the Civil Rights Coordinator for more information at (313) 240-4377 or detroitk12.org/compliance.