SRAI Catalyst

Note from the Editor | April Showers Every spring we take the weather in stride knowing that the payoff will be glorious. The old adage April showers bring May flowers runs through my head during every spring rainstorm. We also apply it to other more proverbial storms, where we put in the work and hope to see the fruits of our labor. This month, whether read more

Spotlight: Hot Topics in Research Law | Safeguarding Science: The False Claims Act and Research Integrity Over the next three months the Spotlight will delve into prevailing topics in research law. Legal matters associated with sponsored research encompass a broad array of issues including compliance, misconduct, integrity, confidentiality, ethics, read more

View from the Top | Spring into Renewal: Commit to Professional Development Embrace the season of growth and renewal by revitalizing your commitment to professional development. It's time to bloom with fresh skills, knowledge, and opportunities. Start your journey toward career growth and success today! Spring is not just a season of blooming flowers read more

Managing Portfolios from Different Ends of the Spectrum | Part 1: Steps to Determine the Root Causes of Underfunding/Overfunding This three-part series delves into best practices for managing principal investigators (PIs) with either too little or too much contract and grant funding. The first part of the series introduces you to the steps to address read more

From Idea to Reality: Introducing an Internal Conference for Research Administrators Introducing internal professional development at your institution can be an exciting and overwhelming task. In 2023, Oklahoma State University (OSU) focused on building up professional development for research administrators internally. One way to accomplish this read more

Post COVID, Surviving With and Without Department Administrators If you are a central office administrator your challenge is to create a shared environment that promotes cooperation. Every interaction with college or department or external institution may vary. Where would our researchers be without a support team? In today’s world, leaders within read more

Navigating the 2024 SRAI VICRA Conference: Insights from a First-Time Attendee As the field of research administration and management continues to evolve, staying abreast of the latest practices, policies, and processes is essential for professionals in the field. Against this backdrop, SRAI’s Virtual International Convention for Research Administrators read more

Your Questions Answered | Part II: What Are Some of the Funniest Things That Were Allowable That Normally Wouldn’t Be? Each month, the Catalyst will feature a question posed to our panel of SRAI Distinguished Faculty members to get their take on all sorts of topics encompassing research administration. Do you have a research administration question read more

My Journey in the Research Administration “Game of Life” | Part 1 At a crossroads in my career, I rolled the dice and entered into a new game of life – the research administration version! Join me as I recount my journey, thus far! As another trip around the sun occurred in my research administration career, more than 20 trips now, I sat down read more

Get Up and Go! We all know sitting at a desk and staring at a screen for hours on end isn't good for us, but knowing and doing are two different things. Catalyst Committee members and other Research Administrators (RAs) share tips that help them Get Up and Go! Kids Go! by They Might Be Giants Hey kid, now's the time to stand up Move your read more