Program Director, Cancer Prevention - Center for Advancing Health Equity for Rural and Underserved Communities

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JOB DESCRIPTION AND POSITION REQUIREMENTS:

About the Unit:

The Penn State College of Medicine, Center for Advancing Health Equity for Rural and Underserved Communities, is seeking a Program Director.

The Center for Advancing Health Equity in Rural and Underserved Communities (CAHE-RUC) is a unique academic and community partnership committed to the comprehensive evaluation and implementation of evidence-based, community-level strategies to improve health outcomes for rural and underserved communities. With locations in Chicago and Hershey CAHE-RUC tackles a variety of complex public health and health system issues that require multi-disciplinary and multi-methodological approaches to achieve outcomes that benefit individuals and whole communities.

The Pennsylvania State College of Medicine (and its academic partners, Penn State Health and Milton S. Hershey Medical Center) are committed to enhancing the quality of life through improved health, the professional preparation of those who will serve the health needs of others and the discovery of knowledge that will benefit all. Penn State College of Medicine is part of an academic medical group that also includes: Penn State Health, a multi-hospital health system serving patients and communities across 29 counties in central Pennsylvania.

Job Summary: 

This position will be located in Chicago, IL office. CAHE-RUC is seeking a highly experienced, and motivated Program Director to provide visionary direction and leadership for the CAHE-RUC Cancer Prevention Team. This team oversees multiple programs from various funding sources, including the CDC, NIH, and the Illinois Department of Public Health. Reporting to center leadership, the Program Director will lead and oversee the cancer prevention team to implement cancer screening and early detection initiatives towards measured improvements in statewide screening outcomes. The Program Director will contribute to the development, coordination, and collaboration with internal and external programs. They will build program and team capacity towards effective implementation and sustainability for all cancer screening and early detection programs. The successful candidate will possess the skills, creativity, and leadership to both implement effective systems and optimize the passion and creativity of each member of our diverse team.

Responsibilities: 

• Work directly with Center Director and leadership on key local state and national initiatives and programs.
• Work directly with health system leadership to implement evidence-based interventions within their health systems.
• Direct and manage a team to implement program and system level prevention strategies that influence administrators, providers, and patients.
• Direct and oversee local and national government funding programs like IL-CARES, Project ECHO, IDPH-funded Colorectal and Prostate Cancer Screening and Awareness.
• Work to enhance usage and build portfolio of online, cloud-based, referral tool known as the Illinois Care Continuum Portal (ICC Portal). 
• Establish and maintain partnerships with community­ based organizations, healthcare providers, health systems, and academic institutions to create, maintain and direct evidence-based healthcare outreach and programming for all communities, including rural and underserved communities.
• Serve as a liaison to community partners, hospital partners and other, professional healthcare organizations, locally statewide and nationally and communicate effectively to partners at state agencies, local health departments, funders, and key community leaders.
• Develop and direct strategic program implementation models for dissemination across programs.
• Conduct research, data collection, needs assessments, and analyses to support program planning and center strategies.
• Participate in established and future research projects and assist with developing or amending study protocols, developing data collection tools, and building databases.
• Assist in the development of grant proposals, manuscripts, and publications.
• Hire and train programmatic staff.
• Manages program managers and coordinators and builds relationships across center-wide operations & programs (i.e., research, educational development, processes).
• Oversees program level reporting processes and monitors performance metrics for staff and consultants.

• Perform other duties as assigned.

Competencies:

• Knowledge of cancer prevention, general public health, quality improvement, project management, adult learning methods and understating of issues related to social determinants of health and access to care (from the community and among health systems).
• Ability to lead, inspire and influence others to achieve a common goal.
• Ability to function as part of an interactive team while demonstrating initiative to achieve project’s goals and advance the Center’s mission.
• Strategic thinking skills including effecting planning, setting goals, monitoring progress, tracking results, and making appropriate adjustments to plans based on circumstances.  
• Ability to manage competing priorities, work simultaneously on multiple initiatives, and meet deadlines.
• Effective organizational and time management skills with a high degree of attention to details.
• Excellent written communications skills for grant proposals, reports, manuscripts, publications, and community education and communication materials.
• Excellent interpersonal communications skills to facilitate multicultural, multi-generational community meetings, committee meetings, and programming, as well as one-on-one conversations with community leaders, funders, and decision-makers.
• Ability to develop strong working relationships with, and build consensus among, a diverse array of stakeholders within the organization and between the organization and community partners.
• Strong analytical skills and problem-solving ability.
• Sensitivity to cultural and ethnic difference and ability to adapt mental health interventions to the Asian, African, and other immigrant communities.
• Fundamental working knowledge of research techniques or methods.
• Familiar with and prior experience using Microsoft Office (e.g., Word, PowerPoint, Excel).

This is a limited-term position funded for one year from date of hire, with possibility of refunding. 

Minimum Education and Experience:

• Master’s degree or higher
• 4+ years related experience
• Or an equivalent combination of education and experience

Preferred Education and Experience:

• Advanced degree in public health, nursing, or related fields
• 5 years of professional experience in leadership in public health and health care setting

• 5 years of experience in a supervisory role
• 5 years of experience in program management
• Experience working with minority populations preferred

The following clearances must be successfully completed for this position:

• Pennsylvania State Police Criminal Background Check
• Pennsylvania Child Abuse History
• Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Criminal Background Check

 
The Pennsylvania State University is committed to and accountable for advancing diversity, equity, and inclusion in all of its forms. We embrace individual uniqueness, foster a culture of inclusive excellence that supports both broad and specific diversity initiatives, leverage the educational and institutional benefits of diversity, and engage all individuals to help them thrive. We value inclusive excellence as a core strength and an essential element of our public service mission.

The pay range for this position, including all possible grades is:

Salary Structure - additional information on Penn State's job and salary structure. 

CAMPUS SECURITY CRIME STATISTICS: