Research Administration Manager - College of Education, Health, & Human Sciences - UTK

University of Tennessee•Knoxville, TN

About The Position

This position will support the PreAward administration and the strategic efforts of the Office of Research and External Funding led by the Senior Research Administration Manager. The position will provide a central infrastructure to support external funding for faculty and centers. The position is on a team that supports PreAward operations of approximately 172 TT and NTT faculty and service center directors and staff. This position will assist all administrative functions of this office which includes but not limited to: scheduling of meetings, office communications, data management and processing, database oversight/upkeep, pre-award research development, and liaise with Division of Research Administration. The Pre-Award Research Administrator provides comprehensive PreAward research administration support for faculty, center directors, and the College. In Proposal Management, the role identifies funding opportunities, assists faculty with interpreting sponsor guidelines, creates templates/checklists from agency rules, plans and coordinates tasks and timelines for proposal submission, develops accurate budgets aligned with sponsor requirements and University accounting codes/fiscal policy, initiates correspondence with grant personnel and external agencies, and performs other research administration duties as assigned by the Associate Dean for Research (ADR) and Senior Research Administration Manager. In Research/Award Management, the Admin trains designated departmental support personnel and interested faculty on electronic submission, reporting, and financial/compliance systems; ensures intellectual property provisions are submitted to UTRF for review; queries research data for monthly accolades and College reporting; coordinates with the Office of Research, Innovation and Economic Development to keep faculty/staff informed of UT and sponsor policies; and monitors and evaluates research activities for research and fiscal compliance across pre-award stages. Under Oversight & Administrative Management, the position serves as a front-line service and office support specialist in a deadline-driven, customer service environment; reviews and approves proposal submissions in the College’s internal routing system; assists the Senior Research Administration Manager with establishing additional support services and trainings to grow CEHHS scholarship; manages all research workshop registrations; and serves as backup to the Senior Research Administration Manager. For Marketing & Data Management, the Admin assists with designing and coordinating office marketing materials, evaluates and disseminates funding opportunity announcements to appropriate target groups, creates and maintains distribution lists for efficient information dissemination, and inputs/evaluates monthly, quarterly, and annual research-related data to measure progress toward Office and College strategic goals and reporting needs. The role also includes reading and interpreting agency guidelines into usable proposal requirements, recommending appropriate fund allocations, coordinating necessary steps to complete grant submissions within specified timeframes, and initiating required correspondence with departments and University officials. This role acts as a compliance steward—ensuring adherence to university, state, federal, and sponsor policies—and provides operational support to expand the College’s external funding capacity.

Responsibilities

Scheduling of meetings
Office communications
Data management and processing
Database oversight/upkeep
Pre-award research development
Liaise with Division of Research Administration
Identifies funding opportunities
Assists faculty with interpreting sponsor guidelines
Creates templates/checklists from agency rules
Plans and coordinates tasks and timelines for proposal submission
Develops accurate budgets aligned with sponsor requirements and University accounting codes/fiscal policy
Initiates correspondence with grant personnel and external agencies
Trains designated departmental support personnel and interested faculty on electronic submission, reporting, and financial/compliance systems
Ensures intellectual property provisions are submitted to UTRF for review
Queries research data for monthly accolades and College reporting
Coordinates with the Office of Research, Innovation and Economic Development to keep faculty/staff informed of UT and sponsor policies
Monitors and evaluates research activities for research and fiscal compliance across pre-award stages
Serves as a front-line service and office support specialist in a deadline-driven, customer service environment
Reviews and approves proposal submissions in the College’s internal routing system
Assists the Senior Research Administration Manager with establishing additional support services and trainings to grow CEHHS scholarship
Manages all research workshop registrations
Serves as backup to the Senior Research Administration Manager
Assists with designing and coordinating office marketing materials
Evaluates and disseminates funding opportunity announcements to appropriate target groups
Creates and maintains distribution lists for efficient information dissemination
Inputs/evaluates monthly, quarterly, and annual research-related data to measure progress toward Office and College strategic goals and reporting needs
Reading and interpreting agency guidelines into usable proposal requirements
Recommending appropriate fund allocations
Coordinating necessary steps to complete grant submissions within specified timeframes
Initiating required correspondence with departments and University officials
Ensuring adherence to university, state, federal, and sponsor policies
Provides operational support to expand the College’s external funding capacity