Community Assessment Research Assistant- Internship Opportunity

This position is an unpaid internship.

The YMCA of Metropolitan Chicago's Research & Evaluation (R&E) team seeks a dedicated Research Assistant to support our community assessment work. The R&E team is responsible for driving cross-functional evaluation and impact measurement throughout the YMCA of Metropolitan Chicago, in addition to knowledge transfer and dissemination via research efforts. This team spearheads association-wide evaluation and assessment to optimize the quality of programs and services provided at Y locations across Chicagoland, and at sites in Wisconsin and Michigan.

The R&E team leads and supports a variety of research initiatives aimed at the Y's essential services, which include, but are not limited to housing, food security, early learning, violence prevention, health equity, and economic empowerment. Another one of the R&E team's responsibilities is to understand the strengths, needs, and wants of the communities we serve and hope to serve. The Department's leading goal is to raise the Y as a vital community asset providing high-quality, innovative programs and services while advancing equity and holistically healthy communities. Community assessment is a pivotal component of achieving this goal, and a primary focus for this position.

Our staff is the Y's greatest asset. Our teams provide valuable skills, knowledge, and passion that is essential to the contribution and positive impact in our communities, which is why we offer Y interns numerous perks and benefits, including:

• Being part of a team that is passionate about building and sustaining an inclusive and equitable environment for all staff, volunteers, and members
• Do meaningful work and contribute to the advancement of the YMCA vision by meeting the needs of the people in our communities
• Complimentary YMCA Family membership
• Career advancement opportunities - grow your career at the Y!

The Community Assessment Research Assistant will support a community assessment in one of the YMCA of Metropolitan Chicago's service areas. Tasks may include (but are not limited to):

• Managing relationships with YMCA staff and local community partners to
  support the overall community assessment project.
• Developing tools for and managing qualitative and quantitative data
  collection to understand the needs and assets of the community.
• Analyzing quantitative and qualitative data using a strengths-based
  approach.
• Obtaining and analyzing secondary data at the community level.
• Writing a report based on the findings of the community assessment.
• Disseminating the findings of the community assessment to a variety of
  audiences/stakeholders.
• Supporting other research and evaluation efforts across the association
  (optional, if interested).

Preferred Qualifications

• Bachelor's Degree in social sciences, humanities, economics, or related field
  and/or equivalent experience.
• One or more years of experience collecting, managing, and analyzing
  qualitative and quantitative data. Non-professional experiences such as that
  gained in education or other lived experience opportunities count.
• Experience in working with Excel and/or Google Sheets.
• Familiarity with online survey systems preferred (such as Alchemer).
• Experience with data visualization, data organization, and processing.
• Comfortable learning new data systems and analysis methods/software.
• Demonstrated ability to manage projects, including developing project
  requirements, developing and tracking key milestones, stakeholder
  management, and related project management skills.
• Ability to travel within the Chicagoland area to visit the community of interest
  and attend activities requiring assessment support (car is not required, just
  the ability to get to site locations).
• Commitment to and passion for the YMCA of Metropolitan Chicago's mission.
• Demonstrated critical thinking and analytical skills; ability to research,
• identify, and analyze relevant trends and qualitative/quantitative data.
• Demonstrated ability to build collaborative, effective relationships with
  diverse stakeholders and team members.

The community assessment will take place in one of the YMCA service areas. As part of the R&E team, this role will work closely with multiple stakeholders including external stakeholders, Y leadership, program directors, and other staff. There may
be opportunities to support other aspects of the R&E team's work through this position. This role will require someone who is detail-focused, is a strategic thinker, and has experience in community assessment processes.

This position is an unpaid opportunity with a flexible start and end date dependent upon the availability of the applicant. The number of hours per week for the project is also flexible, likely between the range of 10-20 hours. This position will be hybrid, with the opportunity to attend in-person meetings at the YMCA office and with some required visits to the select community. If you need accommodations to be fully remote, we will consider that.

The R&E team is seeking an individual with interest and experience with the above skills. We encourage you to apply even if you do not meet every single criterion - we value individuals who demonstrate dedication to equity and hold the foundations to supporting evaluation and research efforts.

Child Abuse Prevention - Support the YMCA's commitment to child abuse prevention by:

• Reporting any items that may provide a health or safety hazard to staff, members or guests to your supervisor
• Following all policies and procedures related to keeping children safe in our facilities and programs, including those related to the monitoring and supervision of children
• Reporting any suspicious behavior and violation of policy and procedures to your supervisor
• Completing all child abuse prevention training, as required

Innovative - Consistently introduces new ideas and demonstrates original thinking
Dedicated - Devoted to a task or purpose with loyalty or integrity

Goal Completion - Inspired to perform well by the completion of tasks
Growth Opportunities - Inspired to perform well by the chance to take on more responsibility
Ability to Make an Impact - Inspired to perform well by the ability to contribute to the success of a project or the organization