About the Role
The Manager, Quantitative Research & Data Analytics ensures that Good Reason Houston's efforts are shaped and sharpened by insights from rigorous data analysis, and that insights can be shared across the community to accelerate and amplify our impact.
This role will work in collaboration with Good Reason Houston's Research, Data, and Impact team to execute the organization-wide research agenda set by the Director by identifying key research questions and data collection methods, conducting analysis, and surfacing insights for various audiences. The Manager will create and manage data systems and may be asked to build staff capacity to utilize those systems in their own work. The team codes in R, manages its code in GitHub, is moving its data from shared drives to a SQL database, and is moving its dashboards from Tableau to R Shiny; the Manager is a hands-on builder of that work. This role reports to the Director, Quantitative Research & Data Analytics.
Primary Responsibilities
Research & Analysis (50%)
- Support development of and execution of organization-wide research agenda, drawing from focus questions across all programmatic areas
- Collaborate with internal team and external partners to develop appropriate research questions and data collection instruments
- Design methodologically sound analytic plans and carry them out in R, using descriptive, regression, and cohort or longitudinal methods as the question requires
- Partner with the Qualitative Research & Insights team on mixed-methods studies, including joint analysis plans and integrated findings
- Perform recurring and ad hoc quantitative data analysis that maximizes Good Reason Houston's impact and aligns with strategic and external affairs objectives
- Write reusable, documented R scripts and functions for recurring analyses, maintained in the team's GitHub repository, so that every published number can be traced to the code that produced it
- Leverage existing data sources to address secondary research questions, including large administrative datasets
- Execute on new research projects aligned with Good Reason Houston's mission and vision
- Develop, maintain, and share expertise on publicly available state- and national- data sources on education, with fluency in Texas Education Agency data (TAPR, PEIMS, STAAR) and working knowledge of higher education and workforce sources (Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board, Texas Workforce Commission, National Student Clearinghouse)
- Support Good Reason Houston's research using student-level longitudinal data through the Texas Education Research Center, including proposal preparation, IRB submissions, analysis, and compliance with output review requirement
- Develop, maintain, and share expertise on relevant research topics and methods
- Develop and facilitate data trainings and workshops, in line with priorities set by the Director, providing small group and individual coaching, and serving as a consultant to internal teams tackling research questions
Data Storytelling (25%)
- Surface insights from data analyses and create compelling visualizations, dashboards, presentations, blogs, memos, and reports that communicate key insights to various audiences, including district and elected leaders, school-based leaders and staff, parents, community organizations, and funders
- Own dashboards and other recurring data products from user need through build and maintenance, in Tableau and R Shiny, including deployment of R Shiny apps
- Present findings both internally and externally and ensure staff and partners are equipped to understand methodology, interpret findings, and apply findings to inform strategies, recommendations, and talking points
- Collaborate with internal teams to produce reports, including presentations, annual reports, grant reports and funder updates and other external communications; support content development related to sharing insights from data
Data Management & Client Management (15%)
- Help design, document, and maintain the team's SQL database, including table structure, naming conventions, the data dictionary, and the data refreshes that feed dashboards, plus day-to-day administration (user access, refresh schedules, backups) to standards set by the Director
- Set and carry out quality control checks for the team's data and analyses, and review the Associate's work and code before release; submit own code and methods for Director review
- Manage requests for data from external partners and internal teams, including Public Information Reports from Texas Education Agency, districts, and non-profit organizations
- Manage day-to-day district data relationships and draft data sharing agreements for Director review, exercising an understanding of FERPA, and work with internal team to identify appropriate data for analyses while overseeing the transfer, storage, and destruction of data as needed
- Review tables, charts, and dashboards against Good Reason Houston's data masking rules before they are shared
- Maintain project plans and communicate to internal and external partners on any contingencies and changes to timelines and deliverables
People Management (10%)
- Lead and mentor an Associate, Data Analytics, fostering a culture of curiosity, collaboration, and methodological rigor
- Provide clear guidance, coaching, and performance feedback to support the professional growth and career development of the team member, including training in R, GitHub, and the team's data sources
- Conduct performance evaluations and career progression planning
- Assign and prioritize the Associate's projects and workload, attending to well-being
- Champion best practices in quantitative research design, analysis, and storytelling through active mentorship and peer review
- Support onboarding and ongoing training of the Associate to strengthen the team's capabilities and methodological range
- Promote a positive, inclusive team culture that values diverse perspectives and approaches to insight generation
Perform other duties as assigned.
Qualifications & Skills
Experience/background:
- Bachelor's degree in a relevant field, advanced degree preferred*
- 4+ years of professional experience in quantitative research or data analytics*
- Prior experience independently leading quantitative research and data analytics projects
- Demonstrated project management experience
- Strong proficiency coding in R for data cleaning, analysis, and visualization
- Experience with version control (e.g., GitHub) and with writing documented, reproducible code
- Experience with SQL or relational databases strongly preferred
- Prior experience with data visualization software (e.g., Tableau) ; experience with R Shiny a plus
- Experience with Texas public education data (TAPR, PEIMS, STAAR) or comparable state education data. Experience with THECB, TWC, National Student Clearinghouse, or student-level data a plus
- Working knowledge of FERPA and of masking small counts in public reporting
- Prior experience with data analysis/statistical software (e.g., R, SPSS, Alteryx, Stata)
- Familiarity with Microsoft Excel, Powerpoint, and Canva
- Experience working in an organization or on a team that requires flexibility, a high degree of responsiveness, and comfort with ambiguity
*Will consider an equivalent combination of relevant education and experience
Skills:
- Ability to produce quality work under tight deadlines
- Ability to translate complex data outputs into meaningful insights
- Sound judgment in using AI tools: whether or not AI assists with your code or analysis, you understand what you did and why, verify the output, and can walk the team through your approach and justify it. You hold the people you manage to the same standard
- Ability to internalize feedback with open demeanor and adapt quickly based on changing information
- Strong data visualization skills
- Strong relationship management skills
- Strong written and verbal communication skills, with ability to synthesize and accurately present relevant data analytics information to various audiences
- Extremely strong organization skills and attention to detail
Working at Good Reason Houston
Good Reason Houston offers a competitive salary commensurate with experience in a similar position. The starting salary for this position is $82,000 annually. This is an exempt position. New hires are offered a salary depending on qualifications, internal equity, and the budgeted amount for the role. Good Reason Houston also has a 401(k) (automatic 3% employer contribution), life, medical, dental and vision insurance packages. Each employee accrues 35 paid time off days per calendar year in addition to the 19 paid holidays per year. Good Reason Houston is an office-based organization, but allows for virtual work on Mondays and Fridays.
Apply at www.GoodReasonHouston.org/Careers
