Key points:
- Beginner- and intermediate-level research administrators across Vanderbilt University are invited to register for a two-day training April 18–19 in Flynn Auditorium at Vanderbilt Law School.
- The training, provided by the Society of Research Administrators International and sponsored by the Division of Finance and Office of the Vice Provost for Research and Innovation, aims to increase the effectiveness of research administrators across campus and improve their professional skill sets so faculty can better be supported in their research and discovery.
- Learn more and register for the training. Please RSVP by March 23.
Vanderbilt’s Research Finance team and the Office of the Vice Provost for Research and Innovation invite research administration staff from across the university to participate in a two-day in-person training opportunity offered by the Society of Research Administrators International.
Whether faculty and staff members have worked in research administration for many years or are new to the day-to-day tasks of administering research grants and funds, this training will provide foundational training in research administration, including content decided upon through conversations between Research Finance, Sponsored Programs Administration and research administrators from across the schools and colleges.
Over the past 15 months, the Research Finance team has worked with a Faculty Senate committee to address challenges defined through a Task Force on Effectiveness report. Turnover among research administration staff and the challenge of ensuring that all research administrators have the tools and skills needed to effectively manage their grants and research dollars emerged as challenges.
While different teams across the university already offer Vanderbilt-specific and general research administration training in house (e.g., SPA training opportunities), by working together Finance and OVPRI saw an opportunity to expand the professional development and training options available to university staff while connecting with SRAI, a leading research administration professional organization.
Participants will spend day one learning about the pre-award steps to set up a successful research project administratively, including comprehensive budget planning, understanding federal policies and regulations, the various awards and award setups available and more. Day two will focus on the post-award elements of research administration, including procurement standards, performance and financial monitoring and reporting, audit requirements and more.
“This is a landmark investment in supporting the professional development of every research administrator who works with faculty on cutting-edge research. It reflects our shared vision of supporting the potential of all members of our Vanderbilt community,” said C. Cybele Raver, provost and vice chancellor for academic affairs. “I thank Vice Chancellor Brett Sweet, Vice Provost Padma Raghavan and our teams for moving this effort forward. It accelerates our upward trajectory of increased research reputation and impact.”
“I’m hopeful that up to 100 people within our research administration faculty and staff will take advantage of this training opportunity, and that they’ll find it useful for both their day-to-day efforts supporting research and innovation at Vanderbilt and their own professional development,” said Brett Sweet, vice chancellor for finance and chief financial officer.
Finance and OVPRI anticipate this will be the first of several collaborations to further develop the research administration capacity throughout campus.