Career Center

Virginia Tech seeks a Director of Privacy and Research Data Protection Program to serve in a critical role in the research enterprise at Virginia Tech.  This position reports to the Associate Vice President of Scholarly Integrity and Research Compliance in the Office of the Senior Vice President for Research and Innovation.

The director’s primary responsibilities are to ensure the privacy and security of research data that are collected, stored, used, and shared under the university’s auspices. The position ensures that Virginia Tech is in compliance with institutional, state and local, and federal privacy regulations. Specific responsibilities include 1) develop and manage a process to support Virginia Tech investigators with addressing and meeting the data protection requirements of research activities; 2) coordinate with other divisions and units responsible for implementing privacy and data protection programs and initiatives; 3) provide subject matter expertise and counsel to the IRB and Virginia Tech investigators regarding data privacy requirements; 4) proactively create and revise university policy and corresponding guidance to assure consistency and currency with privacy-related best practices and evolving external policies; 5) act as the university research data steward; and 6) advise and brief the Associate Vice President for Scholarly Integrity and Research Compliance regarding all matters related to privacy and research data protections.

Opportunities:
- Grow the PRDP program and resources
- Play a leadership role in building an PRDP team reflective of the incumbent’s vision
- Lead institution-wide privacy and research data security ecosystem

About Research and Innovation at Virginia Tech:
Through a portfolio of administrative support and services, investment, unique research talent and capabilities, and world-class facilities, the Office of the Vice President for Research and Innovation (OVPRI) at Virginia Tech bolsters this research enterprise by helping faculty, staff, and students plan, perform, and commercialize groundbreaking research. OVPRI comprises research administrative support offices, including Sponsored Programs, Scholarly Integrity and Research Compliance, Animal Resources and Care, Industry Partnerships and Foundation Relations, Technology Licensing, Export Control and Secure Research Compliance, and Electronic Research Administration. In addition, OVPRI is the home to five Virginia Tech world renowned research institutes, including the Virginia Tech Transportation Institute, the Fralin Biomedical Research Institute, the Fralin Life Sciences Institute, the Institute for Critical Technology and Applied Science, and the Institute for Society, Culture, and Environment. The latter three institutes are a primary mechanism for investing in researchers across the Virginia Tech campuses, with a combination of unique shared facilities, seed grants, and student and faculty assistance.

About Scholarly Integrity and Research Compliance:
Deeply committed to both the highest ethical standards in scholarship, and to the proactive advancement of basic, translational, and transformative scientific advancement for the improvement of the human condition and world, Virginia Tech’s division of Scholarly Integrity and Research Compliance facilitates scholarly excellence by ensuring research regulatory compliance and facilitating ethical decision making. Six teams ensure various areas of research integrity, including protection of privacy and research data, protection of human participants and animal subjects, environmental and personnel safety of laboratory research, and mitigation of research conflicts of interest. Virginia Tech’s Privacy and Research Data Protection Program conducts critical tasks within the SIRC, which is led by the Associate Vice President and reports to the Senior Vice President for Research and Innovation.

Required:

- Advanced degree or bachelor’s degree with equivalent advanced experience
- Demonstrated progressively advanced experience working with data privacy regulations and IT systems and policies related to data privacy and security
- Demonstrable knowledge of regulatory mandates and other privacy and data protection requirements, including HIPAA, FERPA, or GDPR

Preferred:

- Current privacy-related certification or research ethics training
- Experience leading privacy and data security operations at a large institution
- Supervisory and leadership experience in a fast-paced, customer service-oriented setting
- Experience collaborating with information technology professionals to ensure data privacy and security
- Thorough content knowledge of regulatory mandates related to human subjects research protections (the Common Rule) and related privacy requirements

About Virginia Tech

Dedicated to its motto, Ut Prosim (That I May Serve), Virginia Tech pushes the boundaries of knowledge by taking a hands-on, transdisciplinary approach to preparing scholars to be leaders and problem-solvers. A comprehensive land-grant institution that enhances the quality of life in Virginia and throughout the world, Virginia Tech is an inclusive community dedicated to knowledge, discovery, and creativity. The university offers more than 280 majors to a diverse enrollment of more than 36,000 undergraduate, graduate, and professional students in eight undergraduate colleges, a school of medicine, a veterinary medicine college, Graduate School, and Honors College. The university has a significant presence across Virginia, including the Innovation Campus in Northern Virginia; the Health Sciences and Technology Campus in Roanoke; sites in Newport News and Richmond; and numerous Extension offices and research centers. A leading global research institution, Virginia Tech conducts more than $500 million in research annually. Virginia Tech does not discriminate against employees, students, or applicants on the basis of age, color, disability, sex (including pregnancy), gender, gender i...dentity, gender expression, genetic information, national origin, political affiliation, race, religion, sexual orientation, or veteran status, or otherwise discriminate against employees or applicants who inquire about, discuss, or disclose their compensation or the compensation of other employees or applicants, or on any other basis protected by law.

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