The U-M Office of Research will honor two U-M staff members for outstanding research service. Teri Grieb and Susan Johnson will each receive a Distinguished Research Administrator Award.
“Without the expertise and dedication of our research administrators, it would be impossible for U-M to maintain the excellence of its research enterprise,” said S. Jack Hu, interim vice president for research. “U-M’s ability to sustain its research in an increasingly competitive environment for funding is in no small part due to the hard work and knowledge of people like Teri Grieb and Susan Johnson.”
Susan Johnson
An award reception is scheduled for 3:30-5 p.m. May 8 in the Vandenberg Room of the Michigan League, 911 N. University. The awards presentation will begin at 4 p.m., with a reception to follow. The event is open to the public.
The Distinguished Research Administrator Award honors individuals from any unit at the university who have demonstrated distinguished service exemplifying the goals of professional research administration.
Grieb is senior director for research at the Medical School Office of Research and managing director of the Michigan Institute for Clinical and Health Research, positions she has held since 2008 and 2010 respectively. She joined the university in 2006 as industry research liaison for the Medical School Office of Research.
Her role at MICHR and the Medical School Office of Research involves partnering with associate deans in advocacy for the research mission of the Medical School, serving as chief business and administrative officer for the Medical School research mission, assisting with devising and deploying strategic research initiatives, managing projects, and advising on policy, procedural, and operational issues for the research enterprise.
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Colleagues praised Grieb’s ability to bring divergent views together to consensus, to work across disciplinary boundaries, and to innovate new solutions.
As one faculty member put it: “She is smart, capable, clear and efficient. Coupled with her pleasant demeanor, sense of humor and professionalism, Teri is the person from whom you want to get a request for working together.”
Grieb holds a Ph.D. from the genetics program at George Washington University.
Johnson has served in several positions, most recently research process senior manager and research coordinator, since joining the College of Pharmacy in 2003.
Johnson has overseen a dramatic increase in grant submissions during her time as a research administrator, and she helped negotiate a set of six interdisciplinary contracts with the Food and Drug Administration totalling $4.8 million.
Pharmacy faculty members said that Johnson has an “astonishing ability to help make grant applications better” and “exceptional skill at hunting down funding opportunities,” as well as “professionalism, attention to details, knowledge of all possible drawbacks, enthusiasm, and interest.”
She has a master’s degree in organic chemistry from the University of Rochester.
The 2014 winners were selected by Hu based on recommendations from an award selection committee consisting of past award winners: Laura “Lori” Bowden (chair), Department of Biostatistics, School of Public Health; Linda Chadwick, Space Physics Research Laboratory, College of Engineering; Cathy Seay-Ostrowski, business administrator lead/institute manager, U-M Transportation Research Institute; Catherine Thibault, assistant director for administration, Survey Research Center, Institute for Social Research; and Scott Stanfill, research services manager, School of Social Work.
