Senior Data Engineer - Research And Evaluation

POSITION OVERVIEW
Mesa Public Schools is Arizona's largest school district serving approximately 59,000 students in kindergarten through 12th grade. The district is located just east of Phoenix in a diverse residential community supportive of education. Mesa students are frequently recognized for accomplishments in academics, the arts, career and technical education and athletics.
Mesa Public Schools is seeking a highly skilled and experienced Senior Data Engineer. You will assume a strategic role in owning, developing, and maintaining the data infrastructure for our K-12 system. Working closely with cross-functional teams, including a Senior Research Analyst and Business Intelligence Lead, a Junior Data Engineer and other Research and reporting team members, you will lead the creation and implementation of a cohesive and extensive enterprise-wide data model. Your responsibilities will extend to implementing and enforcing policies related to standards, guidelines and governance of educational data. Collaborating with a diverse team of data experts and educators, you will play a pivotal role in leveraging data insights to enhance educational outcomes.
SALARY AND BENEFITS:
This position is also eligible for the following:

• Starting Salary $88,760, but actual salary placement will depend on related work experience and education.
• Pay Grade D72(IS)
• $1,000 performance pay each year
• $900 annual cell phone stipend
• Paid holidays
• Paid leave accruals
• Health insurance

RESPONSIBILITIES AND DUTIES

• Enterprise Data Engineering Leadership

• Own and develop the enterprise data infrastructure, collaborating with a Junior Data Engineer, Student Information Systems, Business Information Systems, and other teams to ensure a seamless and effective data architecture strategy.
• Implement and maintain policies for standards, guidelines, and data integrity and data validation of educational data and business systems data.
• Design innovative data models to maximize the impact of educational initiatives, uncover insights, and predict student behaviors and outcomes.
• Lead the design and implementation of a forward-looking data architecture strategy, drawing from experience in areas such as data preparation, cloud-based data management, and the data development cycle.

• Technical Expertise and Cloud Adoption

• Provide technical leadership for major data strategies, driving the organization's success in adopting modern data models and cloud technologies.
• Guide technical architecture for projects such as data replication, metadata management, DBaaS, data modeling and data security.
• Provide architectural thought leadership and expertise, defining reference and implementation architectures.
• Develop proof-of-concept prototypes and initial implementation models to support the vision and strategy of the district.
• Leverage your deep understanding of SQL and knowledge of development languages (e.g. Python, R) to guide the development and maintenance of Data Engineering pipelines, supporting modeling and analytics needs.
• Define and maintain reusable data development patterns, engineering standards, version control and data frameworks.

• Database Technology and Platform Designs

• Apply expert knowledge of database technology to support legacy DBMSs and design overall data platform solutions.
• Utilize advanced knowledge of data transformation technologies to shape comprehensive data platform designs.
• Utilize a variety of technologies, including SQL, R, Python, and other relevant tools, to manage and analyze large amounts of education data.
• Implement data hygiene practices to ensure statistical efficiency, accuracy, and quality in educational data.

• Collaboration and Stakeholder Engagement

• Work closely with global and district-level stakeholders, including educators, IT professionals, compliance teams, and risk management, to identify, support, and implement data-driven projects.
• Act as a key stakeholder in the entire lifecycle of data-related projects, from design and development to testing, implementation and monitoring.
• Communicate complicated technical concepts effectively to a diverse group of stakeholders, including educators, IT leaders and technical specialists.
• Establish relationships with IT leaders, systems leaders, Data Engineers, and technical specialists to advance proposed architectural solutions.

• Team Leadership and Collaboration

• Manage and mentor a junior Data Engineer, fostering a continuous learning mindset and adapting to the changing needs of the education sector.
• Represent the team in architectural discussions, focusing on data aggregation, data flows, deployment strategies and governance.
• Foster a continuous learning mindset within the team, encouraging personal development and growth.
• Instill a passion for innovation with a test and learn mindset, ensuring the team remains adaptable to evolving educational needs.

• Agile Development and Delivery

• Embrace Agile methodologies in the development process, supporting the effective scaling of digital pilot initiatives from ideation to working pilots and deliverables.
• Act as a change-maker, pursuing process improvements in alignment with the district's vision for digital transformation.

• Other Senior Level Responsibilities

• Collaborate with Research and Evaluation team to build consistent, accurate and available data solutions in specialized software (i.e. PowerBI, Tableau, Excel, etc).
• Independently define problem statements and extract user requirements for data analysis and business intelligence solutions.
• Develop and present analyses and reports using data visualization and storytelling best practices.
• Produce documentation to ensure consistency, quality and transparency across the district.
• Participate in data quality issue analysis and resolution recommendations.
• Combine data files from multiple sources efficiently and effectively to create a clean data set for analysis.
• Write custom SQL queries.
• Provide training on the proper and effective use of data tools .
• Assist other personnel as may be required for the purpose of supporting them in the completion of their work activities.

• Other tasks as assigned.

REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS
To be eligible for this position, an applicant must meet the following required qualifications. Verification of these required qualifications is necessary.

• Bachelor's degree in Information Systems (CIS), Software Engineering, Database Management, Data Science or related field.
• Two years of data analysis and engineering in a K-12 educational system.

PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS
It is preferred that the applicant possess the following preferred qualifications; however, the following qualifications are not required to be eligible for this position.

• Master's degree in Information Systems (CIS), Software Engineering, Database Management, Data Science or related field.
• Previous experience in K-12 education or a related field.

KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS, ABILITIES AND OTHER CHARACTERISTICS (KSAO):
To perform the job successfully, an individual must be able to perform each essential duty satisfactorily. The qualifications for this job description are representative of the knowledge, skill, abilities, and other characteristics necessary for this position. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.
KSAO's necessary for this position include, but is not limited to, the following:

• Advanced knowledge of data analytics, data wrangling and data blending/integration.
• Advanced knowledge of data visualization and reporting tools (e.g. PowerBI, Tableau, Google Analytics, etc).
• Proficiency in SQL and experience in cloud solutions (e.g. Azure, AWS, etc).
• Ability to write and utilize SQL to extract and manipulate data.
• Understanding of database and cloud architectures, with experience in cloud-based data storage and warehousing.
• Familiarity with Agile Development and Delivery, source control and the software development life cycle.
• Demonstrated ability to independently conduct ad-hoc data analysis and reporting.
• Experience creating performance reports/dashboard for non-technical team members.
• Proficient in data processing technologies and Agile development processes.
• Strong analytical abilities and problem-solving skills.
• Experience leading cross-function teams in a dynamic environment.
• Demonstrated skill and knowledge of computer applications in the use of Research and analysis (Excel, R, etc).
• Ability to communicate, both verbally and in writing, clearly and effectively for all levels and types of audiences (technical and non-technical).
• Experience in supervising technical and non-technical personnel in conducting evaluation and research.
• Capacity to work cooperatively with teachers, administrators and other employee groups in an educational setting.
• Strong leadership skills with a self-starter attitude and the ability to manage multiple tasks simultaneously.

Applications:
Candidates must complete and submit an on-line application.
The district does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, ethnicity, national origin, religion, sex or gender, sexual orientation, disability, age or marital status.