Public Health Project Specialist

MEMBER DETAILS

Term of Service: 10/19/2026 to 9/30/2027 (50 weeks)

Slot Type and Minimum Service Hours: Full Time;
1700 Hours;
36 hours per week on average

Living Allowance: $22,000, disbursed in equal bi-weekly increments across the service term

Educational Award: $7,395, awarded upon successful completion of hours at the end of service term.

POSITION DETAILS

Host Site: Ingham County Health Department – Public Health Services

Position Title: Public Health Project Specialist

Reports To: Brenda C. Gray, PhD, MPH – Deputy Health Officer, and Carmina Merz

ABOUT THE HOST SITE

Our mission is to protect, improve, and advocate for the health and well-being of our community by identifying and advancing the conditions under which all people can achieve optimum health.

Website:

MEMBER IMPACT

The Public Health Project Associate will be pivotal in supporting professional practice change and deepening public health practice knowledge and expertise. The member will advance PHS Branch’s effort to enhance integration of clinical services and community-based services with a focus on diabetes and other chronic conditions.

POSITION DETAILS

The Public Health Project Associate will perform a variety of duties including: perform literature reviews;
summarize findings, develop project research design & methodology;
collect, analyze and interpret data;
draft reports and develop presentations.

Responsibilities:

Research, Data Analysis, and Quality Assurance

• Research community-level demographic and SDOH indicators
• Review of datasets related to life expectancy, health conditions (e.G., diabetes), health landscape, nutrition, education, financial stability, environmental hazards, etc.
• Analyzing/visualizing the impact of geographical location on health/wellness outcomes
• Layering feature to evaluate co-morbidities and correlations
• SDOH collection, vacancy data (indicator of neighborhood stability), nutrition and food access, social vulnerability, health professional shortage areas

Community Engagement and Data Collection

• Select and designate appropriate locations for interviews and obtain participant consent.
• Schedule and conduct interviews, administer surveys, and facilitate focus groups to gather qualitative and quantitative data.
• Identify, reach out to, and build relationships with community partners, peer organizations, government agencies, and other stakeholders to support research objectives.

Communications and Reporting

• Assist in the dissemination of project results through policy briefs, white papers, reports, conference presentations, and peer-reviewed publications.
• Support the development of qualitative research outputs, including policy memos and briefing papers.
• Prepare and present reports that demonstrate program impact and inform strategic decision-making.

Training/Professional Development

• Member will complete approximately 20 hours of an online self-paced IRB training
• An AmeriCorps member cannot spend more than 20% of their total service hours in education or training activities (per 45 CFR 2520.50)

Minimum Knowledge and Skills

• Three years of college

Desired Knowledge and Skills

• Bachelor’s degree
• Scientific writing
• Basic research skills

Service Conditions:

• Ability to serve in person is required (5303 S. Cedar St. Lansing, MI)
• Hybrid/Teleservice eligible: Schedule may be hybrid with one to two in-office days per day
• ICHD will provide laptop with necessary software
• Describe in person service environment: Shared, open concept office space

Service Schedule:

• General schedule to be determined between with regular availability during business hours of 8am-5pm with some nights and weeks as needed based on program requirements
• Members are required to participate and attend monthly ICHD Public Health AmeriCorps professional development, quarterly ICHD AmeriCorps professional development, participate in events including national service days, and regional and local service projects.
• Members are allotted 120 hours (3 weeks) of personal leave during service term but lose possible days to earn the required number of hours needed to successfully complete the term of service. There are additional benefits offered if the member has a compelling personal circumstance.

AMERICORPS PROGRAM REQUIREMENTS

• Participate in monthly ICHD PHA AmeriCorps Training and Professional Development in topics like grant-writing and resume development.
• Participate in National Days of Service (9/11 Day of Service, MLK Day of Service, Russ Mawby Regional Day of Service, Youth Volunteer Day)
• Attend AmeriCorps orientation at the Ingham County Health Department
• All members will participate in an end of service performance evaluation
• All members will be required to submit bi-weekly time sheets, quarterly data reports, and all other data tasks requested by the Host Site

Public Health AmeriCorps Members should possess:

• a desire and ability to work with a diverse group of people;
  
• a willingness to learn and serve others;
  
• an ability to work independently and in a team environment successfully, and
• strong organizational, writing, and oral communication skills, and a high attention to detail

AmeriCorps Program Eligibility

• be 17 years or older at the start of service (no upper age limit)
• be a U.S. citizen, U.S. National, or Lawful Permanent Resident Alien
• Agree to and pass a national service criminal history check with eligibility verification in accordance with 45 CFR 2540.202.

AmeriCorps Commitment and Benefits

• Loan forbearance and interest repayment available for eligible loans
• End of Service Segal AmeriCorps Education Award of $7,395.00
• Health insurance
• Childcare assistance
• 120 hours (3 weeks) of personal leave during service term, provided hours are on pace for completion
• $100 monthly Meijer food gift card for each month of service (up to $1200 total)
• $25 per month allowance for mileage reimbursement during each month of service for service-related travel
• Up to $182 available in professional development funds
• Member Assistance Program (link to learn more)
• Hands-on experience in Public Health