User Experience Researcher

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What We Do

At Leading Educators (LE), we know that excellent teaching is the most important driver of student success. The moment a student steps foot in the classroom, their opportunity to learn depends on how prepared their teacher is to translate complex content knowledge, standards, and their knowledge of that student into lessons that help them learn deeply and apply their thinking to the real world.

That’s a big lift, and it often happens alone. As a national nonprofit, we partner with school systems to overcome persistent instructional challenges, foster intentional collaboration and adult learning by design, and ignite new possibilities through systemic solutions at the intersection of teaching, talent, and technology.

We work shoulder-to-shoulder with educators at every level of the education system to strengthen their instructional and leadership practices, bring a vision for excellent instruction to life with consistency, and ensure every student reaches their full potential.

Through direct support, strategic advising, innovation pilots, and best-in-class research, we help educators work toward a future where every student is ready to thrive. Learn more about our work at leadingeducators.org.

 

Internal and External Candidate Application Deadline: 5/4/26

 

Position

At Leading Educators, we believe that excellent teaching transforms student potential into real-world success. But teachers don't work in isolation—they need thoughtfully designed tools, strategic support, and data-driven insights to reach every student. As Director of UX Research, you'll be the architect of that experience, ensuring the technology and measurement tools we create are not just powerful, but genuinely usable and impactful for the educators who depend on them.

This role sits at a critical intersection: where rigorous research meets human-centered design, where impact evaluation connects with technology innovation, and where complex data transforms into actionable insights. You'll partner with our Research and Data team and Innovation colleagues to evaluate how our tools actually work in real classrooms and school systems. Your research will directly shape the products we build and the decisions we make—ensuring that every feature, dashboard, and survey we deploy serves educators and students better.

You'll work with school systems across the country, conduct foundational and evaluative research, synthesize findings into compelling stories, and build a culture where continuous user feedback drives excellence. If you're energized by the intersection of rigorous methodology, product thinking, and educational impact, this is your opportunity to lead research that matters.

Do you have expertise in…

• Designing and conducting mixed-methods UX research including usability testing, cognitive walkthroughs, user interviews, and journey mapping to inform product and tool development?
• Analyzing data with R to clean, visualize, and derive insights from both quantitative and qualitative datasets, translating complexity into clarity?
• Survey design and deployment using platforms like SurveyMonkey, with a strong foundation in instrument design principles and data quality?
• Text analysis and natural language processing techniques—including sentiment analysis and topic modeling—to extract meaning from large volumes of qualitative data?

Do you enjoy…

• Building strong cross-functional partnerships that align differing priorities, clarify roles, and drive coordinated execution across teams and external partners?
• Translating research findings into compelling narratives that resonate with diverse audiences and directly inform critical decisions?
• Engaging directly with end users—teachers, leaders, and system partners—to understand their needs, observe their workflows, and shape the tools they use?
• Solving complex problems at the intersection of research methodology, product thinking, and real-world implementation in educational contexts?

If you've answered affirmatively to these questions and meet the following prerequisites, we urge you to seize this opportunity. This role calls for the following:

• Minimum of 8 years of experience designing and conducting qualitative and quantitative UX research, including usability testing, interviews, surveys, and mixed-methods approaches
• Proficiency in R for data cleaning, analysis, and visualization
• Demonstrated expertise in survey design and deployment using SurveyMonkey or similar platforms, grounded in strong survey design principles
• Experience applying text analysis and natural language processing techniques to qualitative data at scale
• Demonstrated ability to translate complex research findings into clear, compelling insights and recommendations for diverse audiences
• Strong relationship-building and communication skills, with proven experience working across multiple teams and functions
• Familiarity with education technology tools and K-12 education contexts
• Ability to travel 1-5 times per year for organizational retreats, programming, and professional development
• Authorization to work for any employer in the United States

Preferred qualifications:

• Experience using Snowflake Cortex for data analysis and classification
• Experience collaborating on research studies in applied or field-based settings
• Background in information design, data visualization, or dashboard development
• Proficiency with GitHub for version control and collaborative code sharing

 

Travel Requirements

• This is a remote position requires 1 to 5  trips a year
• National travel for org retreats, programming, job related travel, or professional development 
• Outside of the above mentioned travel, this person will work from a home office that must be located anywhere within the U.S. 

 

Questions? We’re here to help.

If you have questions about this role or about our hiring process at any point, please don’t hesitate to reach out to us at talent@leadingeducators.org. This inbox is monitored regularly, and we aim to respond within two business days. To ensure your question receives a thoughtful and timely response, we kindly ask that you refrain from emailing individual staff members or members of our HR team directly. The best way to connect with us is always through talent@leadingeducators.org.

 

Why Work at Leading Educators? 

Imagine being part of an organization where your ideas and perspectives are highly valued. At Leading Educators, we believe in fostering individual strengths, encouraging personal growth, and embracing innovative ideas. If you thrive in a remote working environment, with the added excitement of travel, we're the perfect fit for you. By joining us, you become part of a powerful community of peers nationwide. Regardless of your location, you possess the power to make a significant impact on both students and teachers who rely on us daily. Join Leading Educators and become an integral part of driving progress in education. 

 

Learn About Our Mission & Values:

Mission: Leading Educators partners with school systems to sustain the teaching, leadership, and conditions for every student to succeed in school and in life.

Values:

• Build on strengths: We affirm and begin with the unique and collective talents, experiences, and wisdom of ourselves and others.Continuously learn: We develop ourselves and others. We apply new learning and deepened self-awareness to our relationships and practices.
• Prioritize people: We build trust and reflect on the impact of different perspectives and experiences.
• Champion success for all: We re-imagine structures, habits, and mindsets to ensure every learner has access to evidence-based learning opportunities.

Use of Artificial Intelligence in Hiring

• We use artificial intelligence–enabled tools throughout our hiring process, from the moment a candidate applies through the offer stage, to support administrative tasks and organize candidate materials. These tools help us organize, analyze, and surface relevant information efficiently, but they do not make hiring decisions.

• All candidate materials—including applications, resumes, assessments, and interview feedback—are reviewed and evaluated by people. All hiring decisions, including interview selection, advancement, and offers of employment, are made by humans.

• We use AI solely as a support tool to assist with early-stage reviews and process efficiency. We do not use AI in ways that discriminate based on protected characteristics, nor do we use ZIP codes or similar data to target or exclude protected groups. Our hiring practices are designed to be fair, consistent, and aligned with equal employment opportunity standards.

Benefits

• Compensation:
  •  If hired for this position, the base salary range is $103,649 to $140,231 per year. Most new hires enter the range at a specific point based on their qualifications and the role level. For this position, the standard starting salary is $121,940, which is based on meeting the minimum requirement of 8 years of relevant experience.If you have more than 8 years of directly relevant experience, your starting salary may be adjusted higher within the range, up to a maximum starting salary of $129,779. This approach ensures that candidates with additional experience beyond the minimum are recognized in the initial salary offer.
• Benefits:
  •  100% paid medical, dental, and vision coverage for individual employees. Additional premium costs are covered 60% by Leading Educators for partners and dependents on medical, dental, and vision plans. 4% matching 401k plan, Flexible Spending Accounts for medical, childcare and commuter expenses, and an Employee Assistance Program (EAP). Benefits are valued at or above $9,000 for employees.
• Time Off: 
  • First three years of employment, full time staff accrue 22 days a year. 
  • Five additional days are accrued after the third and sixth year of employment.
  • Leading Educators also offer 22 additional paid days off for various holidays, including three floating holidays staff may use at their discretion.

 

Equal Opportunity Employment 

Leading Educators is an equal opportunity employer.  All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, ethnicity, religion, gender, sexual orientation, national origin, disability, age, marital status, military status, pregnancy, or any other characteristic protected by applicable local, state, or federal laws, rules, or regulations.

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