Policy Fellow

Job Posting Title:

Policy Fellow

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Hiring Department:

Hogg Foundation for Mental Health

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Position Open To:

All Applicants

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Weekly Scheduled Hours:

40

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FLSA Status:

Exempt

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Earliest Start Date:

Jun 03, 2024

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Position Duration:

Expected to Continue

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Location:

UT MAIN CAMPUS

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Job Details:

General Notes

The Hogg Foundation for Mental Health was established in 1940 by the children of Texas Governor James Hogg through an endowment to UT-Austin. For 80 years, we have been working to improve the mental health and well-being of Texans through strategic grant making, research, and policy education.

The Hogg Foundation for Mental Health two-year fellowship is designed to prepare an individual to effectively engage in advocacy and policy focused on supporting mental health and well-being. This fellowship offers mentorship from colleagues with expertise in policy and mental health, works within the Policy Team, and reports to the Director of Policy.

Purpose

The fellowship is expected to begin July 1, 2024 and end June 30, 2026. The policy fellow will be an active participant of the Hogg Policy Academy along with other policy fellows and peer policy fellows funded through the Hogg Foundation Policy Fellow Grant Program . The foundation is piloting a cohort focused on supporting child, youth, and family mental health.  While this position is hybrid, the policy fellow is expected to be in the Austin area during the legislative session to engage fully in-person.   

 

 Responsibilities

• Collaborate with policy team on strategic planning and project development for the foundation’s policy-related initiatives. Build expertise and serve as a resource on identified priorities . Provide technical assistance to grant partners, legislative staff, state agency staff, and other stakeholders.
• Represent the foundation and participate in meetings with advocates, state agency staff, legislative offices, coalitions, workgroups, and other stakeholders. Plan, organize, convene, and facilitate stakeholder meetings. Represent the foundation, including public speaking, at professional conferences, workshops, and events as needed.
• Conduct research related to the foundation’s strategic plan and policy priorities. Draft and edit written policy products, including updating the Mental Health Guide , bill analyses, testimonies, one-pagers, legislative session summaries, and other informational documents. Track and analyze legislation, legislative interim charges/activities, and state agency rule making.
• Represent the foundation during the Texas legislative session, including attending committee hearings, providing written and oral testimony, and joining or facilitating meetings with legislative offices to provide education and technical assistance.
• Participate as an active team member on foundation-wide activities, internal foundation projects, including policy-related grant initiatives.
• Participate as an active member in the Hogg Policy Academy monthly meetings and related events.

Required Qualifications

• Must be a recent graduate within the past 24 months from a program in social work, public health, public policy, political science, or related social and behavioral sciences. Bachelor's degree required, master's degree preferred. 
• Willingness and excitement to learn about policy topics, policy-making processes, and the legislative process. 
• Demonstrated experience and ability to conduct policy research utilizing a variety of resources and outlets, synthesize information, and prepare reports, summaries, presentations, analysis, and recommendations as appropriate. 
• Strong written and verbal communication skills. 
• The ability to work independently, as well as collaboratively with colleagues, individuals with lived experience of mental health and substance use conditions, advocates, Texas legislative offices, and other external stakeholders.  
• Excellent organizational skills, including the ability to manage multiple tasks and projects simultaneously. 
• Strong critical thinking and problem-solving skills. Capacity to think strategically and respond analytically. 
• Willingness and ability to travel, on occasion, to various locations throughout the Austin area and Texas. 

Preferred Qualifications

• Individuals with personal or familial lived experience of mental health or substance use willing to share their perspective to inform the policy team's work are encouraged to apply. 
• Some familiarity with or working knowledge of mental health and substance use issues, programs, and services in Texas.  
• Some familiarity with, and/or working knowledge of the Texas Legislature.  
• Understanding of and/or familiarity with the cultures and languages of Texas.

Salary Range

$55,000-$60,000

Working Conditions

Standard office working conditions.

Required Materials

• Resume/CV
• Cover letter 
• Two Writing Samples 
• 3 work references with their contact information; at least one reference should be from a supervisor 

Important for applicants who are NOT current university employees or contingent workers: You will be prompted to submit your resume the first time you apply, then you will be provided an option to upload a new Resume for subsequent applications. Any additional Required Materials (letter of interest, references, etc.) will be uploaded in the Application Questions section; you will be able to multi-select additional files. Before submitting your online job application, ensure that ALL Required Materials have been uploaded.  Once your job application has been submitted, you cannot make changes.

Important for Current university employees and contingent workers: As a current university employee or contingent worker, you MUST apply within Workday by searching for Find UT Jobs. If you are a current University employee, log-in to Workday, navigate to your Worker Profile, click the Career link in the left hand navigation menu and then update the sections in your Professional Profile before you apply. This information will be pulled in to your application. The application is one page and you will be prompted to upload your resume. In addition, you must respond to the application questions presented to upload any additional Required Materials (letter of interest, references, etc.) that were noted above.

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Employment Eligibility:

Regular staff who have been employed in their current position for the last six continuous months are eligible for openings being recruited for through University-Wide or Open Recruiting, to include both promotional opportunities and lateral transfers. Staff who are promotion/transfer eligible may apply for positions without supervisor approval.

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Retirement Plan Eligibility:

The retirement plan for this position is Teacher Retirement System of Texas (TRS), subject to the position being at least 20 hours per week and at least 135 days in length.

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Background Checks:

A criminal history background check will be required for finalist(s) under consideration for this position.

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Equal Opportunity Employer:

The University of Texas at Austin, as an equal opportunity/affirmative action employer , complies with all applicable federal and state laws regarding nondiscrimination and affirmative action. The University is committed to a policy of equal opportunity for all persons and does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, age, marital status, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, disability, religion, or veteran status in employment, educational programs and activities, and admissions.

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Pay Transparency:

The University of Texas at Austin will not discharge or in any other manner discriminate against employees or applicants because they have inquired about, discussed, or disclosed their own pay or the pay of another employee or applicant. However, employees who have access to the compensation information of other employees or applicants as a part of their essential job functions cannot disclose the pay of other employees or applicants to individuals who do not otherwise have access to compensation information, unless the disclosure is (a) in response to a formal complaint or charge, (b) in furtherance of an investigation, proceeding, hearing, or action, including an investigation conducted by the employer, or (c) consistent with the contractor’s legal duty to furnish information.

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Employment Eligibility Verification:

If hired, you will be required to complete the federal Employment Eligibility Verification I-9 form.  You will be required to present acceptable and original documents to prove your identity and authorization to work in the United States.  Documents need to be presented no later than the third day of employment.  Failure to do so will result in loss of employment at the university.

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E-Verify:

The University of Texas at Austin use E-Verify to check the work authorization of all new hires effective May 2015. The university’s company ID number for purposes of E-Verify is 854197. For more information about E-Verify, please see the following:

• E-Verify Poster (English) [PDF]
• E-Verify Poster (Spanish) [PDF]
• Right To Work Poster (English) [PDF]
• Right To Work Poster (Spanish) [PDF]

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Compliance:

Employees may be required to report violations of law under Title IX and the Jeanne Clery Disclosure of Campus Security Policy and Crime Statistics Act (Clery Act). If this position is identified a Campus Security Authority (Clery Act), you will be notified and provided resources for reporting. Responsible employees under Title IX are defined and outlined in HOP-3031 .

The Clery Act requires all prospective employees be notified of the availability of the Annual Security and Fire Safety report. You may access the most recent report here or obtain a copy at University Compliance Services, 1616 Guadalupe Street, UTA 2.206, Austin, Texas 78701.