Dina Berin

MDRC, 16 East 34th Street, 19th Floor, New York, NY10016

(212) 340-8606,

Education

University of Chicago, Chicago, IL MPPJune2008

IrvingB.HarrisGraduateSchoolof Public Policy Studies

  • Concentration Areas: Program Evaluation, Health and Disability
  • Recipient ofDean’s Scholarship, 2005-2007

City University of New York, New York, NY 2007

Graduate School and University Center, Disability Studies Program

Oberlin College, Oberlin, OHBA May 1999

Biology Major, Sociology Minor

  • Recipient of National Science Foundation Fellowship for summer internship in 1997.
  • Smithsonian Environmental ResearchCenterIntern, Edgewater, MD, Summer 1998 and 1999.

Experience

MDRC, New York, NY Summer 2006-present

Operations Associate, research organization specializing in technical assistance and evaluation of socialprograms and policies for low-income communities.

  • Member of Welfare and Barriers to Employment Policy Area, specializing in program evaluation and health and disability policies for low-income communities.
  • Day-to-day manager of project resources, site operations lead, and qualitative researcher for a large-scale multi-million dollar national evaluation funded by the Social Security Administration. Activitiesinclude program design, technical assistance, qualitative interviewing, and fiscal/contract monitoring.

NationalOpinionResearchCenter (NORC),Chicago, IL Spring 2004-Summer 2006

Survey Director,social science research organization specializingin survey development and administration and technology.

  • Promoted from Survey Specialist to Survey Director in December 2005.
  • One of 25 out of 500 full-time employees awarded for excellence in Spring 2005.
  • Area of concentration: Design, implementation and quantitative analysis of surveys for low-income communities.
  • Planned and executed efforts to locate 7,500households for follow-up survey. Managed and trained team of field staff. Obtained proficiency in national locating databases.
  • Translated survey design into user-friendly protocols and practical tools for research and non-research staff. Maximized data quality while minimizingproduction inefficiencies.
  • Performed detailed review, cleaning, and analysis of large datasetsusing SAS and Microsoft Access in preparation for delivery to client or report writing.

MDRC, New York, NY Fall 1999-Fall 2003

Operations Analyst, research organization specializing in technical assistance and evaluation of social programs and policies for low-income communities.

  • Promoted twice in four years: Operations Assistant I to Operations Analyst.
  • As Analyst, founded a new position to coordinate project management with budget accountability.
  • Developed a reporting structure for project that was adopted department-wide by project managers.
  • Throughout tenure, traveled extensively to perform on-site analyses of program operations, develop programs for evaluation, and design procedures to facilitate data collection.Drafted and provided training to state and program-level staff involved with program evaluations;
  • Co-authored a technical assistance guide for program managers.Supervised and coordinated production of “how-to” guides that provided best practices and other technical assistance advice to practitioners.
  • Designed and monitored project website to promote sharing of best practices. Co-edited a web-distributed series of short papers on the most asked questions from the field.

Volunteer Experience

Center for Economic Progress, Chicago, IL Winter 2004

Community Food Resource Center, New York, NY Winter 2002, 2003

Tax Assistance Volunteer

  • Prepared income taxes for low-income working families.

Software Proficiencies

  • Microsoft Office (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Access, Visio, Outlook);
  • Data analysis software: SAS v9.0; SPSS; STATA
  • National Locating Databases: Accurint, Targus, and Telematch

Publications

MDRC. Forthcoming, 2009. “Accelerated Benefits Demonstration: Early Assessment Findings.” MDRC. (Co-Author)

National Opinion Research Center. June 2005. Resident Relocation Survey: Phase III Baseline Methodology and Results. NationalOpinionResearchCenter. (Co-Author)

NationalOpinionResearchCenter. September 2004. Resident Relocation Survey: Phase II First-Follow-Up Methodology and Results. NationalOpinionResearchCenter. (Co-Author)

Wavelet, M., S. Rowser, F. Molina, D. Berin, and J. Kelly. 2003. Practical Tips and Tools to Strengthen Your ERA Program: A Technical Assistance Guide for the Employment Retention and Advancement Project. MDRC. (Co-Author)

MDRC. 2001-2003. Employment Retention and Advancement Evaluation Project Website: A learning community for evaluation clients, research, and participants. (Website Designer, Author, and Editor)

Questions from the Field. 2000-2003. Web-distributed series of questions and answers, no.1-10 published. (Editor)

Martinson, K., D. Butler, and D. Berin. 2000. “Recommendations for Strengthening Employment Retention and Advancement Strategies in the RamseyCounty MFIP Program.” MDRC. (Co-Author)

Craine, J., D. Berin, P. Reich, D. Tilman, and J. Knops. 1999. “Leaf Longevity of Fourteen Species of Grasses and Forbs in Relation to Functional Group Classification.” New Phytologist. (Co-Author)

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