Division of Research Opens Offices at FAU Liberal Arts

The Division of Research now has offices on the Davie campus. Members of the offices of Sponsored Programs, Research Accounting and Research Communications team recently moved to offices in the Liberal Arts Building. The move provides easier access to Broward-based faculty to services that support their research. “We not only want to be easily accessible to the faculty that we serve, we also want to get to know the different research needs on our campuses,” said Dr. Karin Scarpinato, senior associate vice president for research. “Of course, researchers can contact us at any time electronically or otherwise to discuss their needs. Now, in Davie they can do it in person as well.”

Muriel Industrious, assistant director of proposal services in Sponsored Programs, can be found in office 410. Sponsored Programs is the central office for the review and submission of research, training and community service proposals and acceptance of externally funded awards. The office negotiates contracts, sub-awards and other agreements, oversees awards and provides research-related information sessions/workshops for faculty, staff and research administrators.

Three members of the Research Accounting office: Deon Pottinger, associate director, research accounting; Jessica Gallardo and Michael Simcox, both research accountants, will be located in office 413 on a rotating schedule. The office provides post-award financial services for externally funded sponsored research and activities, which include: project/account setup, expenditure approval and oversight, invoicing and financial reporting, effort reporting, adherence to federal regulations, and award closeout.

Lillian Cozart, the division’s web master, is in office 411. She’s part of the DOR communications team, which promotes research and scholarly activity at the university by disseminating news and information about FAU research to internal and external audiences through a variety of channels. In addition, the office supports FAU researchers, informing them about the division’s services, programs, events and regulatory changes that may impact their research.

Last fiscal year, external organizations — many of them federal agencies — awarded FAU faculty a record $78.6 million for research projects. That’s an 88% increase from just five years ago. The university goal is to continue to grow its research funding and the Division of Research plays a central role in administering that work.