Research Administrator Appreciation Day celebrated campus community, launch of new portal

Dr. Duane Mitchell welcomed guests at the inaugural UF Research Administrator Appreciation Day.

Research administrators from throughout the UF community gathered at Smathers Library on Oct. 1 to network and mingle at a celebration of their work to support the university’s more than $865 million in research expenditures. The inaugural event—UF’s unique take on National Research Administrator Day—also celebrated the launch of the university’s new Research Administration Portal.

The event kicked off with welcoming remarks from Brian Sevier, director of UF’s Office of Clinical Research, and Dr. Duane Mitchell, co-director of the Preston A. Wells Jr. Center for Brain Tumor Therapy and director of the UF Brain Tumor Immunotherapy Program. Dr. Karla Shelnutt, associate professor and nutrition extension specialist, and other representatives from the UF research community were also on-hand to thank the research administrator community for their many contributions and accomplishments.

research administrators
Among those who are working to create a more unified UF research administration community are (L-R): Stephanie Gray, Nisio Mercado, Brian Sevier, Joe Stokes and Dave Veal.

A new Research Administration Portal was also introduced at the event as a hub for all information related to fiscal, human resources and non-financial management of sponsored programs. The portal comprises both original content as well as many links to previously existing content available on UF and non-UF websites.

The new portal is intended to foster grassroots community engagement and resource contributions. Users are strongly encouraged to contribute comments, ideas and useful tools they may have created themselves or found elsewhere.

In addition to content designed for research administrators, specialized content is also available for principal investigators, study coordinators and other research staff. To learn more, visit https://raportal.research.ufl.edu.

Pictured at top: Terri Dildine and Iptihal Al-Ghamdi, of UF’s Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, were among the research administrators who joined in the Research Administrator Appreciation Day celebration.

Some additional scenes from UF’s Research Administrator Appreciation Day

Meredith David, Belinda Nacionales and Eddie Wiggins
Devin Dissell
Michelle Romano, Leland Hill, Vicki Tucker and Rose Jones
Tiffany Schmidt and Ryan Davison

Published

Category Campus Community, News, UF Focus