Policy & Research Intern

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The Public Health Institute (PHI) is an independent, nonprofit organization dedicated to promoting health, well-being, and quality of life for people throughout California, across the nation and around the world. As one of the largest and most comprehensive public health organizations in the nation, we are at the forefront of research and innovations to improve the efficacy of public health statewide, nationally, and internationally.

PHI was distinguished as one of the top 50 “Best Non-Profit Organizations to Work For” by the Non-Profit Times in a national search.

Position Summary

The California Coalition for Black Birth Justice (the Coalition) was launched in January 2022 by Black women leaders from birth equity initiatives in Northern and Southern California to unify and strengthen the Black birth justice movement across the state. The Coalition came together in the midst of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and on the heels of the national “racial reckoning”. While California leads the nation in its investment and commitment to birth equity and justice, there was no unified vision or strategy to make this a reality. As Black women with roots across the diaspora and deep expertise in policy, community organizing, clinical care, and more, we came together to help meet a critical need. To our knowledge, the Coalition is the first entity that aims to create statewide collaboration and coordination among Black birth equity and justice efforts.

We believe that in order to truly disrupt and ultimately reverse the inequities in maternal and infant health, we need sustained investments in Black-led organizations, new ways of working together, and equity-centered actions from our policymakers, philanthropists, and healthcare systems. Therefore, our work is focused on being a statewide connector and convener, supporting the care and capacity of the Black birth justice workforce, and scaling systems change improvement efforts with health care organizations.

The Policy & Research Intern will participate in the development of novel policy recommendations for the state of California to address Black maternal and infant health disparities, engage in research activities that will evaluate California clinician experiences through assisting with protocol development, interview, and analysis, and assist in organizing and facilitating strategic advisor meetings.

This intern will be coached on how to design and implement qualitative research, research and write policy briefs, and facilitate a coalition. This coaching will include assisting them with the creation of interview/survey questions, analysis plan development, report writing, and teaching facilitation skills. Throughout this process they will develop hard research and policy development skills, practice translation through presenting their findings, and gain facilitation skills.

This is a regular, time-limited, part-time position expected to work 20 hours per week (50% FTE) and is expected to start in September 2024 with an expected end date of February 28, 2025. At PHI, a time-limited position is defined as regular employment with an expected end date of no more than one year from the beginning of the position. In rare circumstances, time-limited positions may be extended to a maximum total length of up to eighteen (18) months from the start of the employee’s original time-limited position.

This is a remote position based in California. Candidates in Southern California are preferred.

Full pay range for this position: $21.07 to $29.13 per hour. The typical hiring range for this position is from $21.07 (minimum) to $25.10 (midpoint) per hour. The starting wage is determined based on the candidate’s knowledge, skills, experience, as well as budget availability.

Essential Duties & Responsibilities

• Design and develop interview protocols including processing documents, scripts, and analysis plans.
• Assist with conducting interviews with clinicians to learn more about experiences of care provision.
• Research and track emerging Black birth equity related policy trends in California.
• Analyze collected data.
• Write final reports/briefs that include reflections on findings.
• Present findings to CA Coalition staff.
• Assist with planning and facilitating meetings with Coalition strategic advisors.
• Perform other duties as assigned.

Minimum Qualifications

• Must be currently enrolled in the first year of a Master’s degree program in Public Health, Health Care Administration, Public Administration, Public Policy or a related field; or in the summer after the first year.

Other Qualifications

• Familiarity with equity and racial justice, cultural humility, and inclusiveness.
• Knowledge of qualitative and quantitative research methods.
• Strong facilitation skills.
• Strategic thinker.
• Self-starter.
• Excellent writing skills, including the ability to synthesize large amounts of information into succinct summaries and reports.
• Proficiency in MS Office Suite (Word, PowerPoint, and Excel).
• Ability to work with autonomy in a fast paced, high productivity environment.
• Commitment to Southern California communities experiencing health equity challenges.

EEO Statement

The Public Health Institute is committed to a policy that provides equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants for employment without regard to race, color, sex, religion, national origin, ancestry, age, marital status, pregnancy, medical condition including genetic characteristics, physical or mental disability, veteran status, gender identification and expression, sexual orientation, and to make all employment decisions so as to further this principle of equal employment opportunity. To this end, the PHI will not discriminate against any employee or applicant for employment because of race, color, sex, religion, national origin, ancestry, age, marital status, pregnancy, medical condition including genetic characteristics, physical or mental disability, veteran status, gender identification and expression, sexual orientation, and will take affirmative action to ensure that applicants are offered employment and employees are treated during employment without regard to these characteristics.

For further information regarding Equal Employment Opportunity, copy and paste the following URL into your web browser: http://www.dol.gov/ofccp/regs/compliance/posters/pdf/eeopost.pdf

ADA Statement:

The Public Health Institute is committed to providing access and reasonable accommodation in its services, programs, activities and employment for individuals with disabilities. To request disability accommodation in the application process, contact the Recruitment Team at least 48 hours in advance at Recruitment@phi.org.

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We’re so pleased the Public Health Institute is an organization you would like to work with. Do you have questions about this opportunity? If so, email our recruitment team at Recruitment@phi.org.

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