This work study position will support the activities of the National Sobering Collaborative (NSC), co-founded by a UCSF faculty member. NSC is a 501(c)3 non-profit formed to support the expansion of and advance the best practices for sobering care services to provide short-term, easy-to-access, and safe environments for recovery from alcohol and/or other drug intoxication. As a low-barrier, harm reduction offering, sobering centers provide care for those acutely intoxicated as an alternative to the emergency department and/or jail.
NSC’s activities are varied and include but are not limited to a monthly and virtual Sobering Care Provider Network; supporting individual and organizational members; running a national conference; engaging with other organizations providing care to related service models (e.g., healthcare, emergency medicine, law enforcement, homeless healthcare).
Dr. Smith-Bernardin is associate professor with SBS in the School of Nursing, with research on alcohol use disorders, sobering center and emergency medicine collaborations, and homelessness. Depending on the interest and skills of the student, this role offers additional opportunity to participate in ongoing research related to alcohol use, harm reduction, sobering centers, and related topics.
Responsibilities:
● Support the executive director in the operation of the National Sobering Collaborative
● Update and maintain directory of sobering programs in North America
● Assist with the planning of the 2026 Annual Sobering Summit (Date TBD)
● Assist with fund development activities including corporate sponsorship, individual giving, and/or grant research, development, review and submission
● Assist with enhancing NSC’s technical assistance resources aimed at helping other communities to design and implement sobering care (e.g., Community Needs
Assessment, Tool Kit, Resource Repository, Research page)
● Coordinate monthly Sobering Care Provider Network speakers with sobering centers nationally, including outreaching to and preparing speakers
● Support the research lead with administrative assistance
Qualifications:
● High personal motivation, self-management, attention to detail, and an ability to work under supervision
● Experienced in creating polished reports/ data visualizations
● Excellent interpersonal, and oral and written communication skills, with an ability to work independently
● Interest in the care of and interventions aimed at reducing harmful substance use, including at the individual, community, government, policy levels
● Working knowledge of Microsoft Office, Google Suite, and Canva
● Comfortable learning new software
● Experience organizing and presenting information to different audiences
Time Commitment:
● The hours for this position are flexible and will generally average 3-7 hours per week with more immediately before, after, and during the Sobering Summit needed
● Attendance and travel at the 2026 Sobering Summit, Fall date TBD required
Students must qualify for Federal Work Study program