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Data Production Specialist

The Roper Center is the largest Public Opinion Data archive in existence and an internationally trusted digital repository. Since its founding in the 1940s, the Center has maintained two key objectives: (1) to preserve the voice of the public in the form of public opinion polling data and maintain these data in the most current formats possible, and (2) to redessiminate the data in detailed and complete form via intuitive access tools.

The Centers data curation and processing team is currently enhancing curation methods and appropriate metadata structures for born digital materials, while streamlining workflows in order to accommodate archiving a broader and more diverse collection of materials. The Data Production Specialist is a new position within the archive team and will work to streamline work processing, integrating best practices to assure quality assurance. This position will play a leading role in supporting long-term management of research data throughout the data lifecycle, including issues of digital preservation and access, intellectual property rights, and security of sensitive data.

Responsibilites

• Manages and coordinates various workflows for dataset and summary data release in accordance with expanding digital curation and online accessibility requirements
• Analyzes processing streams to develop more efficient production workflows
• Oversees the production of and builds metadata content for databases served by online retrieval systems for data discovery to external clients, including the preparation of materials for iPOLL, a question level database
• Produces documentation to clearly describe methods of data collection and reporting 
• Assists in research, review, testing and evaluation of support products or enhancements.
• Assists in the development of archival tools and services to support data curation.    
• Develops scripts, writes, and maintains programs as required for workflow processing.
• Advises users on the availability of data and provides user support of Center collections
• Coordinates regular ongoing data acquisitions with data providers
• Communicates with data producers to secure all necessary metadata pertaining to archived survey materials.
• Participates in the development and adoption of archival standards for the Center’s collections
• Performs other related duties as required.

Qualifications

• BA/BS in related field and (including but, not limited to Information Science, Social Science, Computer Science) and 1-3 years experience. Candidates with a relevant MA/MS will be given preference.
• Demonstrated metadata development skills, strong data skills, analytical reasoning and logical problem solving along with, a working knowledge of issues and challenges related to data management/curation, including format migration, preservation, metadata, data retrieval and research data use.
• Able to manage time and multiple projects in a complex, changing environment with a positive, flexible, creative and innovative attitude.
• Demonstrated ability to work individually and collaboratively in a team environment.
• Familiarity with one or more current scientific data and metadata conventions.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills and strong editing skills
• The ability to acquire new technological skills and resolve problems in a resourceful and timely manner. Demonstrated ability to meet deadlines within a production environment.
• Excellent organizational skills, accuracy and attentiveness to detail
• Experience training/consulting with users on computing problems, or programming in a large data processing environment.
• A demonstrated ability to oversee student and/or professional staff

Other Desirable Qualifications/Skills

• Candidates with a relevant MA/MS will be given strong preference.
• Programming experience.
• Familiarity with long-term management of research data throughout the data lifecycle and with common metadata standards, e.g., DDI; understanding of ontology and semantic relationships highly preferred.
• Knowledge of common development tools & languages, e.g. Java, SQL, XML/XSLT, PHP, Perl.
• Coursework or extensive experience in data management and curation.

To Apply
Interested applicants must apply by using Husky Hire. Please, upload a current resume, letter of application, and the names, telephone numbers and e-mail addresses of three professional references. The University of Connecticut is an EEO/AA employer.

Executive Director of the Roper Center

Position Summary

The University of Connecticut and the Board of Directors of the Roper Center are searching for a recognized scholar for a tenured faculty position in an academic department and a five year (renewable) appointment as Executive Director of the Roper Center.

The Center is celebrating its 35th year on the University's main campus in Storrs. The current Executive Director, Dr. Mark Abrahamson, is retiring from the position at the end of this academic year. The University has engaged in several exciting initiatives in recent years that make it a research university of note, nationally and internationally. Starting in 1995, the University has received $2.3 billion in funds to rebuild the campuses physically, making our facilities among the best in the world. Most recently, the University is engaged in hiring 275 new faculty over four years to further strengthen our research and teaching missions. And thanks to an innovative environmental policy, UConn was recently recognized by the Sierra Club as one of the top 5 greenest universities in the United States.

The Roper Center's new Executive Director will be able to capitalize on these advances and more in demonstrative ways upon his/her arrival on campus. The Executive Director is expected to provide strategic leadership, continue to move the Center toward economic self-sufficiency, and to build upon the Center's internationally recognized reputation as the world's largest archive of public opinion data.

As the director of a major center at the University, the Executive Director reports directly to the University's Vice President for Research. The Executive Director also has obligations to the external Board of the Roper Center which is responsible for establishing membership and fee structures, approving archival policies and new expenditures. An important part of the Executive Director's responsibilities is to reconcile the expectations of the University and the Board. In recognition of the Director's administrative responsibilities, and to enable the Director to continue to meet scholarly expectations, the Director will have appropriate teaching and service obligations in the academic department offering tenure.

Qualifications

Minimum Qualifications:

1. Scholarly accomplishments that warrant a tenured appointment in an academic department.
2. Recognized expertise in public opinion / survey research.
3. Success in obtaining grant support and other forms of external funding.
4. Experience in supervising professional staff.

Preferred Qualifications:

1. Digital archiving and global trends in archival practices.
2. The development and implementation of business models.

Appointment Terms

This is a 12-month, management–exempt appointment with competitive salary and benefits.

To Apply

Applicants should upload their curriculum vitae, a letter of application, statement describing research plans and teaching interests, selected scholarly papers and publications, and three letters of reference by October 1st, 2012 via Husky Hire.

For confidential inquiries, nominations or additional information please contact the Search Committee Chair: Dr. Mark A. Boyer, Professor and Department Head, Department of Political Science, U-1024, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT 06269; mark.boyer@uconn.edu; 860-486-3156.

The University of Connecticut and the Board of the Roper Center are committed to enhancing the diversity of our academic community, and applications from members of historically underrepresented groups are particularly welcome. The University of Connecticut is an EEO/AA employer.

This job posting is scheduled to be removed at 11:59 PM eastern on 10/1/2012.

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