Grant and Research Development Specialist

Stony Brook University•Stony Brook, NY

About The Position

The Grant and Research Development Specialist supports the Division of Student Affairs by facilitating grants, funding proposals, awards, recognition opportunities, and publishing. The role works closely with Student Affairs and other higher education professionals on strategic planning, writing, editing, and submission of grant proposals, fellowships, awards, and other recognition applications. The Specialist identifies funding opportunities and develops proposals to secure grant funding. The Specialist builds relationships with colleagues, faculty, staff, research offices, the Research Foundation, and the Office of Research Compliance and Sponsored Programs. The position develops knowledge of university research administration policies and the division’s research priorities, monitors federal and private funding opportunities, and provides strategic guidance on pursuing relevant funding. Grant development duties include advising investigators on proposal content and organization; writing, formatting, and editing proposal materials; managing submission timelines and checklists; developing budgets; coordinating partner documentation; and submitting complete, compliant applications through sponsor and university systems. Post-award work includes monitoring expenditures and effort, assisting with budget changes and renewals, tracking fund use, and resolving administrative or financial issues in coordination with relevant university units. The Specialist also maintains grant resources, templates, tracking systems, and funding statistics; produces a monthly internal funding newsletter; develops funding resources; and manages the team website with the Associate Director. The role participates in professional development and divisional events and may perform other duties or projects as assigned. Hours outside the typical work schedule may occasionally be required. This is an essential, full-time, FLSA-exempt position.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree (foreign equivalent or higher).
Three years of full-time grants or proposal development experience.

Nice To Haves

Experience in a higher education environment or a public institution.
Experience developing sponsored proposals or securing grants.
Experience publishing peer-reviewed literature.
Experience producing content for professional or trade periodicals, academic journals, newsletters, online blogs, or e-journals.

Responsibilities

Cultivate working relationships with colleagues, faculty, staff, research offices, the Research Foundation, and the Office of Research Compliance and Sponsored Programs.
Develop an understanding of university research administration policies, other relevant university policies, and the division’s research priorities.
Monitor and catalog federal and private funding opportunities and identify potential collaborations across areas.
Provide strategic guidance on targeting and pursuing funding opportunities.
Advise investigators on proposal content and organization and assist with updates as research aims evolve.
Contribute to proposal writing, formatting, and figure editing.
Create and use application checklists to manage grant submission timelines and progress.
Develop grant proposal budgets and coordinate submissions, sponsor guidelines, timelines, partner documentation, and timely submission.
Assemble and submit materials through sponsor systems such as Research.gov and Grants.gov and the university routing system, MyResearch, ensuring compliance and error-free acceptance.
Identify funding opportunities and train staff and faculty on submission systems.
Evaluate processes and provide policy guidance on sponsor requirements.
Monitor grant expenditures, compliance, effort, budget modifications and renewals, and funding changes.
Monitor Research Foundation reports and manage fund utilization, recoverable costs, unencumbered funds, close-out, and spending.
Resolve administrative and financial obstacles by coordinating with Grants Management, Sponsored Programs, Payroll, Procurement, and other administrative units.
Create and maintain descriptions of assets and resources and grant component templates aligned with sponsor policies.
Develop and maintain a tracking system for grant statistics, success rates, and other measures.
Create and distribute a monthly internal newsletter about funding opportunities and updates.
Develop and maintain funding opportunity resources.
Develop content for and manage the team website with the Associate Director.
Participate in professional development activities, including classes, training, webinars, conferences, and committees.
Attend or support Division of Student Affairs events, activities, and programs.
Perform other duties or projects as assigned in accordance with the role and departmental mission.