Careers Job Description
General Description
CUNY Institute for State and Local Governance (ISLG): About Us
The CUNY Institute for State and Local Governance has a mission to improve the financing, delivery, and measurement of critical public services through research, technical assistance, and education. We lead projects aimed at reforming the criminal justice system, measuring urban inequality, expanding the reach of social service providers, and more. Each project has a dedicated team of research and policy experts who collaborate closely with internal and external organizations. ?For more information about ISLG, please visit www.islg.cuny.edu.
Our Goals for Diversity and Inclusion
We strive to foster an office environment and an approach to work that welcomes and respects different perspectives, backgrounds, and life experiences. We are working towards our goal of recruiting and retaining staff, interns and advisory group members who are diverse in terms of race, national origin, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, age, religion, veteran status, socioeconomic status, disability, and justice system involvement.
Who we are looking for
ISLG is recruiting up to four (4) CUNY undergraduate and/or graduate student interns to work on a variety of research projects. Interns may work on one or more projects and may contribute to a number of quantitative or qualitative analyses and help with project administration. Potential projects include but are not limited to:
- The Safety and Justice Challenge (SJC) is a national initiative launched in 2015 by the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation. The initiative advances fair and effective policies and practices across the local criminal legal system, with three key goals–reduce jail populations; promote racial equity and reduce racial/ethnic disparities in jails; and advance community safety. Over 50 cities and counties across the country participate in the SJC and are supported by an infrastructure of technical assistance providers, strategic allies, communications support, data and research partners. CUNY ISLG serves as the national intermediary and primary data and analytic partner for the SJC.
- The Mecklenburg County (NC) Crime Trends study seeks to build public understanding of crime trends, justice system responses, and reforms in the context of significant population, economic, and criminal justice system changes in Mecklenburg County, North Carolina over recent decades. It aims to provide county leadership and the public with a deeper understanding of public safety trends, demographic shifts and reform strategies. The research draws on multiple data sources, including administrative criminal justice data, Census information, and interviews with system stakeholders and community members. It aims to create a comprehensive, nuanced understanding of public safety that goes beyond simple crime statistics to explore the complex intersection of policy, community dynamics, and system change.
- The Comprehensive Opioid, Stimulant, and Substance Use Program (COSSUP) is a Bureau of Justice Assistance initiative that provides funding for the development, implementation, or expansion of comprehensive efforts to identify, respond to, treat, and support those impacted by opioids, stimulants and other drugs.
- The BJA Smart Supervision Project is a Bureau of Justice Assistance funded project to develop an integrated data system in York County, Pennsylvania. The IDS will integrate client- and case-level records from criminal justice, medical and behavioral health, and human service entities operating in the County. The goals of the integrated data system are to help support more effective client case management by sharing information about client involvement in multiple systems (e.g., probation, jail, mental health, substance use), and to increase successful and equitable outcomes for probation supervision clients. CUNY ISLG serves as the research and evaluation partner for the project.
The core of this internship is creating community and peer-to-peer learning among ISLG interns; to foster community we will have bi-weekly, in-person convenings that will cover a range of topics such as relationship building, project management, etc.
We are hiring interns to work at ISLG from June 2nd to August 1st. Interns will have a hybrid work schedule and report to a designated ISLG staff member. Interns will work on a range of tasks within the project(s) listed above as well as others not listed here.
We are seeking both data-focused interns as well as research support interns. Tasks that the interns may be responsible for include:
- Writing syntax to process, validate and standardize case-level administrative data files for analysis (data-focused interns);
- Attending meetings with project partners and taking notes;
- Conducting literature reviews around a variety of topics;
- Synthesizing research publications across SJC priority areas, including those identified above;
- Contributing to public-facing written products, including policy and issue briefs, and presentations for academic and community audiences; and
- Other tasks as needed to support ISLG’s work.
Other Duties
Qualifications
- Currently enrolled in one of the following degree programs at a CUNY school or have graduated from such a program within the last year: criminal justice, sociology, or other social science field;
- Possess demonstrated experience carrying out tasks related to the collection, management, and dissemination of complex data (data-focused interns);
- Proficiency in one or more of the following programming languages: R, Stata, SPSS (data-focused interns);
- Understanding of both quantitative and qualitative research methods and analysis;
- Experience and/or interest in community engagement approaches to research;
- Ability to summarize key findings and synthesize results across multiple research publications; and
- Ability to communicate work and with team members in an accessible manner
We would love to hear from you, if you are/have:
- Ability to commit to a consistent schedule of approximately 35 hours per week for the internship period (June 2– August 1)
- Ability to attend peer-to-peer credentialed in-person weekly sessions on Wednesday’s from 9:00am-11:00am
- Excellent time management skills and experience working in deadline-driven environments
- Ability to prioritize and work on a number of tasks simultaneously
- Flexibility about projects and workflow
- Passion about equitable state and local policy solutions to pressing social issues
ISLG is open to flexibility on the requirements above, but we would expect candidates to fit most of the items described.
How to Apply
To apply for an internship, you will need to submit a cover letter describing your qualifications and interests and attach your curriculum vitae. Additionally, we ask that candidates submit the following materials:
- A cover letter that includes your area(s) of interest, how you hope to contribute to ISLG’s mission, and your proposed start and end dates and work schedule. (1 page limit)
- A resume or curriculum vitae. (1 page limit)
- The contact information for 2 references (preferably professors or former supervisors of employment relating to the work of ISLG).
- Unofficial transcripts (Strongly Recommended).
All application documents must be in English and submitted in a single PDF to info@islg.cuny.edu by the deadline listed below. Please use the subject line “Summer Intern Research Application” Incomplete application packets will not be considered.
Application deadline will be on March 31.
RFCUNY Benefits
RFCUNY Employee Benefits and AccrualsAbout the Research Foundation
The Research Foundation of The City University of New York (RFCUNY) is a nonprofit educational corporation founded in 1963 to provide post-award fiscal and administrative support for CUNY’s research and sponsored programs. RFCUNY’s services allow CUNY researchers, faculty, and staff to focus on their intellectual curiosity and scientific discoveries, on projects and programs that serve our local and global communities, proposing concrete solutions to society’s most pressing challenges.
RFCUNY serves as a fiscal agent and works closely with all the CUNY campus Grants Offices to perform the core functions of post-award financial management for CUNY research projects and sponsored programs. These functions include legal assessment and signing of agreements where RFCUNY is named as a fiscal agent; setting up award accounts; preparing sub-awards and assisting PIs in monitoring the work of the recipients of sub-awards; supporting project directors with hiring and managing research project and sponsored program staff; supporting the purchasing and paying for goods and services with grant and program funds; managing financial aspects of projects including accounts receivable, financial reporting, invoicing, budget monitoring, and cost compliance with uniform guidance; ensuring that sponsor financial requirements are met; monitoring compliance with applicable project and financial management rules and laws; supporting the management of independent and external audits and financial reviews; and providing data, information, management expertise, and other supports to CUNY’s research and sponsored programs.
Equal Employment Opportunity Statement
Key Features
CUNY Institute for State and Local Gover
Full Time
$20.00-$25.00
Mar 31, 2025 (Or Until Filled)