The Office of Research will recognize two U-M staff members for outstanding research service.
Sharyn Sivyer, managing project representative at the Office of Research and Sponsored Projects, will receive the Exceptional Service Award. Cathy Handyside, project manager with Information and Technology Services, will receive the Distinguished Research Administrator Award.
Sharyn Sivyer
“It would be impossible to maintain U-M’s status as one of the top research universities in the world without the expertise of dedicated people like Cathy Handyside and Sharyn Sivyer,” said S. Jack Hu, interim vice president for research.
“U-M continues to enjoy one of the largest research budgets among American universities because of the hard work and knowledge of these award winners and hundreds of other research administrators across campus.”
An award reception is scheduled for 3:30-5 p.m. May 4 in the Vandenberg Room of the Michigan League, 911 N. University. The award ceremony and remarks from Hu will begin at 4 p.m., with a reception to follow. The event is open to the public.
The Distinguished Research Administrator Award is open to research administrators in any unit, and recognizes exemplary service to the research community over a number of years.
In her nomination material, Handyside was credited with being instrumental in the creation and deployment of the University eResearch Proposal Management system, the Conflict of Interest information system, and the IRB eResearch module.
“She is truly a model of the self-directed, compassionate and mission-oriented professional,” said one colleague.
Handyside has been at U-M since 2000, starting at Michigan Administrative Information Services as a performance support analyst and consultant, senior business systems analyst, and senior IT project manager. She has been an IT program manager at ITS since October 2010.
The Exceptional Service Award honors staff members in Office of Research units for important contributions to the university’s research mission through exceptional performance and by going beyond the ordinary fulfillment of position duties.
In her nomination letters, Sivyer was praised for her work in designing and deploying the Unfunded Agreements system in the eResearch Proposal Management system; service as a mentor and coach to Office of Research and Sponsored Projects staff and the university research administration community at large; and work in helping in the formation of the Michigan Mobility Transformation Center, a public-private partnership for studying automated and connected vehicles.
Colleagues described Sivyer as “socially and emotionally intelligent,” “kind, gentle and respectful,” and “wonderful to work with.”
Sivyer has been at ORSP (formerly known as Division of Research Development and Administration) since 1982, when she was an office assistant. She has since served as assistant project representative, project representative, senior project representative, and, since 2012, managing project representative.
The awards were selected by Hu based on recommendations from an award selection committee consisting of past award winners: Cathy Thibault (chair), assistant director for administration, Survey Research Center, Institute for Social Research; Teri Grieb, senior director of research Medical School, Office of Research, and managing director of the Michigan Institute for Clinical and Health Research; Catherine Seay-Ostrowski, institute administrative manager, U-M Transportation Research Institute Administration; Sharon Vaassen, research manager, Orthopaedic Surgery; and Linda Chadwick, Cyclone Global Navigation Satellite System administrative manager, Department of Atmospheric, Oceanic and Space Sciences, College of Engineering.
