The Healthy Aging & Alzheimer's Research Care Center

Employment Opportunities

Staff Positions

Community Clinical Research Liaison

The Community Clinical Research Liaison (CCRL) supports the Healthy Aging & Alzheimer’s Research Care (HAARC) Center within the Biological Sciences Division by bridging diverse Chicagoland communities and the Center. This role focuses on building trust, engaging community members and organizations, and recruiting participants for HAARC Center studies. Key responsibilities include connecting the Center with local communities—particularly Black and Latino/a populations—through ongoing engagement with community clinicians, organizations, and residents to promote study enrollment and retention. The CCRL will work in close partnership with the study Principal Investigator (PI) and the Director of Community Engagement, Outreach, and Recruitment to align community needs with research goals.

As part of the HAARC Center, the CCRL will join a collaborative research environment dedicated to improving the lives of those affected by Alzheimer’s and related dementias. Candidates should have experience working with underrepresented populations in research, strong communication skills, and a commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion. The CCRL plays a vital role in outreach, engagement, and supporting study enrollment and retention, directly advancing the HAARC Center’s mission.

Responsibilities

  • Actively engage with community members, clinicians, and community-based organizations to build connections, recruit participants, and ensure ongoing engagement. Build and maintain relationships with community partners by attending meetings, tracking communications and partner interests, facilitating connections.
  • Manage aspects of clinical research outreach, including participant recruitment, screening, and enrollment processes in collaboration with study PI and Director of Community Engagement, Outreach and Recruitment.
  • May assist with obtaining informed consent, collecting research data, and ensuring protocol adherence.
  • Represent the HAARC Center at community events, which will occur on evenings or weekends.
  • Conduct in-person and online eligibility screenings and manage referrals to ensure a seamless participant transition to the study site.
  • Prepare weekly reports on recruitment and retention efforts.
  • Facilitate the development and dissemination of promotional study materials.
  • Develop weekly reports on recruitment/retention activities and maintain recruitment and outreach databases.
  • Protect participant data confidentiality by ensuring the security of research data and personal information health information and compliance with federal regulations and sponsor protocols.
  • Ensures standard operating procedures (SOP) are implemented and documented in accordance to study sponsor, primary investigator, and regulatory specifications.
  • Assists with various professional, organizational, and operational tasks under moderate supervision.
  • Uses knowledge of clinical studies to coordinate the collection of analyzable clinical research data and/or samples with a limited to moderate degree of independence. Contributes to the problem solving on assigned clinical research studies and tasks.
  • Performs other related work as needed.

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Postdoctoral Scholar Position

This position is based in the Women’s Brain Health research program led by Dr. Francesca Farina, Assistant Professor in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology and faculty member of the Healthy Aging & Alzheimer’s Research Care (HAARC) Center at the University of Chicago. Dr. Farina is a neuroscientist whose research examines modifiable factors influencing Alzheimer’s risk, with a focus on resilience during key life transitions such as menopause.

This position offers a unique opportunity to collaborate across the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, the HAARC Center in Neurology, and international research partners. The postdoctoral scholar will contribute to multidisciplinary and global initiatives in women’s brain health and Alzheimer’s disease prevention. Mentorship from Dr. Farina and the wider team will support the development of research skills and preparation for an academic career.

The successful candidate will hold a degree in Neuroscience, Psychology, or a related field and be proficient in statistical programming (e.g., R, Python). They should have experience with data collection and management tools such as REDCap, along with data processing and statistical analysis of large datasets. The candidate will also demonstrate strong ability to prepare scientific manuscripts for publication, present research at conferences, and work effectively in a multidisciplinary, collaborative research environment. The candidate will be expected to complete all required training for conducting human subjects research and to ensure compliance with institutional, state, and federal regulatory policies and procedures.

 

Applicants should submit a curriculum vitae, cover letter, and names and emails of two references to Dr. Farina at ffarina@uchicago.edu.

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