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• An application
• Transcripts – Click here for detailed information about acceptable transcripts
• A current resume/CV, including academic history, employment history, relevant experiences, and publication list
• One educational or professional recommendation. Your application will be considered incomplete, and will not be reviewed until one recommendation is submitted.

All documents must be in English or include an official English translation.

*Applications will be reviewed on a rolling-basis.

HHS Office and Location: A research opportunity is currently available with the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) located in Rockville, Maryland.

The mission of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) is to enhance the health and well-being of all Americans, by providing for effective health and human services and by fostering sound, sustained advances in the sciences underlying medicine, public health, and social services. Within HHS, the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) administers various programs that aim to provide equitable health care to people who are geographically isolated and economically or medically vulnerable. The HRSA's Maternal and Child Health Bureau (MCHB) manages programs to improve the health and well-being of America’s mothers, children, and families.

Research Project: The ORISE Fellow will collaborate with the Division of Home Visiting and Early Childhood Systems’ Office of the Director to support activity focused on the advancement of Health Equity and the strengthening of Early Childhood Systems. Specifically, the fellow will build upon projects to conduct program and policy analyses, continually improve and articulate the progress and impact of early childhood systems programs. The fellow will also support efforts to improve collaboration across federal early childhood programs and with specific stakeholder groups such as health providers and families through conducting analyses of current collaborative efforts and supporting the development of strategies and resources to facilitate collaboration. This will include contributing to the development of communications materials and a strategic partner engagement plan for the Division of Home Visiting and Early Childhood Systems.

The fellow will also support projects across the entire portfolio of early childhood systems and home visiting programs that explore qualitative and quantitative methods to measure advancements towards eliminating inequality and advancing health equity across the various program areas. This will be in collaboration with the Division’s Health Equity Advisor and the DHVECS Health Equity Workgroup.

Learning Objectives: The follow will learn to:

• Conduct literature reviews, policy analyses and stakeholder conversations to develop recommendations about early childhood systems
• Review existing ECCS/MIECHV/TV and other documents with a focus on systems development, equity, collaboration and measurement strategies
• Help to coordinate focus groups with awardees and stakeholders to explore facilitators and barriers to collaboration and systems development
• Participate in interagency meetings focused on improving coordination across programs and assist in developing supportive materials such as guidance documents, webinars and communications plans to promote collaboration
• Contribute to the development and execution of a strategic partner engagement plan
• Revise communications materials such as talking points, one-pagers and web-site
• Conduct literature reviews and analyses of secondary data to develop recommendations for program improvement directly related to reducing disparities and improving equity
• Collect promising practices around equity from early childhood and home visiting awardees and external collaborators
• Assist in the implementation of the Division’s Strategic Planning “Roadmap” and corresponding Health Equity Workgroup Action Plan
• Participate in the refinement and piloting of the Continuous Quality Improvement (CQI) Health Equity Framework in home visiting
• Help with the Division and MCHB-wide efforts to improve perinatal equity through internal and external collaboration with key partners;

Mentor(s): The mentor for this opportunity is Kasey Farrell (Kfarrell@hrsa.gov). If you have questions about the nature of the research please contact the mentor(s). 

Anticipated Appointment Start Date: April 22, 2024. Start date is flexible and will depend on a variety of factors.

Appointment Length: The appointment will initially be for one year, but may be renewed upon recommendation of CDC and is contingent on the availability of funds.

Level of Participation: The appointment is full time.

Participant Stipend: Stipend rates may vary based on numerous factors, including opportunity, location, education, and experience. If you are interviewed, you can inquire about the exact stipend rate at that time and if selected, your appointment offer will include the monthly stipend rate.

Citizenship Requirements: This opportunity is available to U.S. citizens and Lawful Permanent Residents (LPR) only.

ORISE Information: This program, administered by ORAU through its contract with the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) to manage the Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education (ORISE), was established through an interagency agreement between DOE and HHS. Participants do not become employees of HHS, DOE or the program administrator, and there are no employment-related benefits. Proof of health insurance is required for participation in this program. Health insurance can be obtained through ORISE.

The successful applicant(s) will be required to comply with Environmental, Safety and Health (ES&H) requirements of the hosting facility, including but not limited to, COVID-19 requirements (e.g. facial covering, physical distancing, testing, vaccination).

Questions: Please visit our Program Website. After reading, if you have additional questions about the application process please email HHSrpp@orau.org and include the reference code for this opportunity.

The qualified candidate should be currently pursuing or have received a master's degree in the one of the relevant fields. Degree must have been received within the past five years or anticipated to be received within 6 months of the anticipated start date (April 22, 2024).

Preferred skills:

• Demonstrated ability to provide research expertise across a range of public health topics with a particular emphasis on early childhood, reducing health disparities and advancing health equity.
• Demonstrated proficiency in the application of quantitative and/or qualitative research methods and performance measurement tools.
• Demonstrated skills in applying research and data to inform program decisions.
• Demonstrated ability to participate in a research team in leadership and/or support roles.
• Strong oral and written communication skills, including experience presenting to diverse audiences, and developing high-quality reports and other written products.
• Strong critical thinking, creativity, collaboration, problem-solving, and time management skills.   

• Citizenship: LPR or U.S. Citizen
• Degree: Master's Degree received within the last 60 months or anticipated to be received by 4/22/2024 11:59:00 PM.
• Discipline(s):
  • Communications and Graphics Design (1 )
  • Life Health and Medical Sciences (3 )
  • Social and Behavioral Sciences (2 )