Location: Syracuse, NY Category: Research Foundation Posted On: Wed Jul 31 2024 Job Description:

Title: Senior Research Support Specialist

Descriptive Title: Program Coordinator - New York Mammal Survey

Department: Environmental Biology

DURATION: The position will be filled as soon as possible, extend through March 2026, and may extend additional years depending upon available funding.

Salary Range: $58,000 - $62,000/annual; commensurate with experience

Brief Description of Duties: The New York Mammal Survey (NYMS) seeks a biologist with mammal expertise to serve as Program Coordinator. NYMS is the first comprehensive, statewide assessment of the distribution of New York's terrestrial and freshwater mammals. Our approach combines several sources of data, e.g., citizen accounts via iNaturalist and other sources, existing but uncatalogued records from published literature as well as research and monitoring projects, and our own field surveys. This data will be managed online, enabling public exploration of records by specific temporal or geographic scope within the state of New York, and ultimately will be used to inform species distributions and changes over time. The Program Coordinator works closely with PI(s) Jacqueline Frair (SUNY ESF Roosevelt Wildlife Station) and Matt Schlesinger (NY Natural Heritage Program) and biologists from the NY State Department of Environmental Conservation (NYS DEC), in consultation with the NYMS advisory committee.

Primary duties:

• Manage field data collection: Coordinate survey locations across the 9 different NYS DEC regions, train state biologists and field techs in field protocol, and manage field equipment purchases and loans; manage tablets and app used for data collection; manage research permits, renewals, and reports.

• Manage Google Drive connections and database: periodically pull georeferenced data from online databases (e.g., Zooniverse, GBIF), bulk upload research and other reference data into NYMS database and manage/clean tablet-based field data.

• Extract camera trap data: Manage high volumes of camera trap data, tag photos with mammal occurrences, and upload data into the online database.

• Confirm/check species ID: quality check field and online data sources, coordinate genetic confirmation of field specimens via the Whipps lab at ESF.

• Manage NYMS web site: Coordinate web site updates with external contractor; prepare and manage text and reference materials for website.

• Produce final report and publications: Coordinate meetings and workshops with NYS DEC staff and collaborators to determine the format and content of species accounts. Lead the analysis of occurrence data to map species distributions, as well as peer-reviewed publications where applicable. Lead the compilation and production of the final NYMS report.

• Provide public and scientific talks, produce periodic reports, and contribute to scientific papers on the New York Mammal Survey.

• Manage purchasing card, volunteer appointments and related travel expense paperwork.

• Manage and regularly update NYMS social media accounts (e.g., Twitter, Facebook).

  Job Requirements:

Required Qualifications:

• MS degree, with expertise in species distribution modeling.

• Excellent data management skills, with working knowledge of R and ArcGIS.

• Coding aptitude

• Excellent communication skills and ability to work effectively with a diversity of stakeholders.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Experience in Python and SQL

  Additional Information:

In accordance with the "Jeanne Clery Disclosure of Campus Security Policy and Campus Crime Statistics Act" institutions of higher education are required to prepare an annual report containing information on campus security policies and campus statistics. This report includes statistics for the previous three years concerning reported crimes that occurred on-campus; in certain off-campus buildings or property owned or controlled by SUNY-ESF; and on property within, or immediately adjacent to and accessible from the campus. The report also includes institutional policies concerning campus security, such as policies concerning sexual assault, and other matters. You can obtain a printed copy of this report by contacting SUNY-ESF University Police at 315-470-6667 or by accessing the following web site: https://www.esf.edu/safety/annual-security-reports.php

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As an Equal Opportunity / Affirmative Action Employer, The Research Foundation for SUNY will not discriminate in its employment practices due to an applicant's race, color, creed, religion, sex (including pregnancy, childbirth or related medical conditions), sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, transgender status, age, national origin, marital status, citizenship, physical and mental disability, criminal record, genetic information, predisposition or carrier status, status with respect to receiving public assistance, domestic violence victim status, a disabled, special, recently separated, active duty wartime, campaign badge, Armed Forces service medal veteran, or any other characteristics protected under applicable law.

The Research Foundation for The State University of New York offers exceptional benefits such as healthcare, dental, vision, pension plans, competitive pay, generous paid time off, life insurance and long-term disability insurance.

The Research Foundation for the State University of New York is not an agency or instrumentality of the State of New York. Employees of the Research Foundation for the State University of New York are not state employees, do not participate in any state retirement system, and do not receive state fringe benefits. The Research Foundation for the State University of New York operates under a contract with The State University of New York and receives no directly appropriate state funding.