Job Description
32095BR
Office of Research
Position Overview The Hall Center for the Humanities seeks a Research
Development Officer (RDO) with a proven history of leadership to direct the operations of its Research & Grant Development Office (RGDO).
The successful applicant will demonstrate the ability to provide strategic planning and the innovation necessary to effectively meet the
challenges of a changing academic and research environment. The RDO's primary directive is to provide the direction, oversight, and
organizational management to ensure that the RGDO accomplishes its mission:
To stimulate external grant and fellowship proposal
development and enhance the quality of applications submitted by KU scholars engaged in humanities-focused research, which is a
component of the Hall Center's mission:
To foster and support research in the humanities and share the knowledge created with a range of
communities, on campus and off. The RDO's work contributes significantly to the
Research and Discovery component of the
University of Kansas "Jayhawks Rising" strategic plan and KU Office of Research strategies for achieving "One KU"-the integration of major
interdisciplinary initiatives across the Lawrence, Edwards, and Medical Center campuses. The RDO works closely with the Hall Center Director
to support the Hall Center's applications for external funding to carry out its mission. The RDO is appointed by and reports to the
Associate Vice Chancellor for Research in KU's Office of Research.
Job Description 55% - Research
and Grant Development - Responsible for managing services related to research and grant development activities for KU units,
teams of faculty and staff, and individual scholars in the humanities, creative fields, and humanities-oriented social sciences
disciplines.
- Facilitates collaborations across disciplines and schools at the university.
- Organizes teams of research
partners and assists with complex interdisciplinary proposals.
- Supervises the RGDO staff.
- Trains research and grant
development staff in grants administration, federal requirements, and university guidelines.
- Assigns the Research Development
Specialist (RDS) to individual and interdisciplinary research team proposals and other tasks, and prioritizes work to ensure deadlines are
met.
- Leads development of outreach and research development educational initiatives.
- Serves as the primary liaison between
KU's Office of Research Awards Management Services (AMS), particularly Pre-Awards Services, and the investigator/research team, providing
direct support for proposal preparation to the investigators/research teams.
- Monitors relevant humanities granting agency priorities
and develops/maintains contacts with program officers for advance knowledge of new or revised funding programs and initiatives; communicates
this information to researchers and research development teams.
- Researches and communicates funding opportunities based on specific
investigator's/team's criteria.
- Assists individual humanities researchers/teams in developing long-term funding plans/strategies
based on research agendas/career goals.
- Provides guidance to interdisciplinary investigators/teams on strategic approaches to
funding calls based on analysis of funding calls and agency priorities.
- Develops project management plans for investigators/teams to
meet proposal deadlines and advises investigators/teams on university/agency submission requirements, including issues of
compliance.
- Reviews written materials and provides technical editing.
- Develops proposal materials related to standard
elements such as management plans, educational outreach, and data management to include editing for format, page length, and
coherence.
- Works with humanities/humanities-related investigators/teams to develop comprehensive budgets that support research needs
based on the research plan and sponsor's guidelines.
- Reviews and preliminarily negotiates contracts and
sub-contracts.
- Develops and presents investigator events such as trainings, workshops, and other activities on a variety of
research-related topics.
25% - Outreach, Networking, and Integrated Research Development - Collaborates with
the KU Research Development community of practice, including the research development team in the KU Office of Research (KUOR) and embedded
research development personnel in other research centers and institutes.
- Collaboration will include attending KUOR Research
Development meetings, sharing KUOR communications and funding opportunity announcements with campus scholars in the humanities and
humanities-related fields, aiding in generating programmatic synergy across KU, and taking part in interdisciplinary research development
events. Also collaborates with leadership across relevant academic units and sub-units, as appropriate, and with the College of Liberal Arts
& Sciences and Provost's Office on external funding issues, opportunities, policies, and practices.
- Participates with colleagues
across KU campuses to support research development recruitment and education strategies.
- Oversees the organization and production of
grant-related training materials and educational events for humanities and humanities-integrated scholars/teams.
- Represents the
humanities and the University of Kansas to local, regional, and national constituencies.
10% - RGDO
Administration - Maintains responsibility for the organization and management of all activities of the Hall Center's Research
& Grant Development Office (RGDO), including oversight of the Research Development Specialist (RDS) and, if applicable, graduate
interns.
- Sets and ensures compliance with grant-related standards and policies.
- Oversees maintenance of RGDO's standard
operating procedures.
- Maintains and continually develops the RGDO's sections of the Hall Center's website.
- Assists with new
faculty recruitment.
5% - Professional Development - Maintains active membership in appropriate professional
organizations and participates in relevant conferences and workshops.
5% - Other Duties as Assigned - This
job description is designed to indicate the general nature and level of work for this position; it is not intended to provide a
comprehensive inventory of all duties required
Position Requirements - Hybrid schedule possible, with one (1)
day remote and four (4) days on-site: Non-negotiable.
Required Qualifications - Master's degree in a
humanities or allied field and two (2) years of grant development or other relevant experience, including personnel management, OR
bachelor's degree in a humanities or allied field and six (6) years of relevant experience.
- Experience in grant-writing or otherwise
assisting in the development of successful external funding proposals, as demonstrated by application materials.
- Evidence of
experiences that required strong writing and proofreading skills, including writing clearly and concisely and editing for grammar, spelling,
syntax, and style as evidenced in application materials.
- Experience working with word processing software and programs needed to
create budgets, as evidenced in application materials.
- Excellent organizational skills, as evidenced by application
materials.
- Two (2) years of supervisory experience.
Preferred Qualifications - PhD in humanities or
allied field.
- Professional Experience with any of the following, as demonstrated through application materials:
- National
Council of University Research Administrators (NCURA) Pre-Award Certificate, Certified Research Administrator (CRA), Grant Professional
Certification (GPA), or other nationally recognized professional certification related to grant proposal development and
administration.
- Experience working in a university environment.
- Experience working as part of a team to accomplish goals,
e.g., developing a major grant proposal for a collaborative research project.
- Experience as a program officer or grant proposal
reviewer for a granting agency, e.g., the National Endowment for the Humanities.
- Experience that required success coaching
and mentoring supervised employees (or faculty and research staff) to effectively accomplish their work and advance their own career
objectives, as evidenced in application materials.
- Experience that necessitated exceptional organizational, time, and project
management skills, including accomplishing complex tasks in a detail-oriented and efficient manner, as illustrated in application
materials.
- Experience consistently meeting deadlines, as shown in application materials.
- Experience with
oral/interpersonal communication with a range of constituents, as evidenced by application materials.
- Experience with handling
sensitive information with discretion and diplomacy, as demonstrated by application materials
- Experience using word processing,
databases, spreadsheet software, website design and/or maintenance software, and conveying information/data with a variety of digital
tools/applications, as shown in application materials.
Contact Information to Applicants Candan
Tamerler
ctamerler@ku.edu
Additional Candidate Instruction This position has been reopened for
additional applicants.
In addition to the online application, the following documents are required to be considered for this
position:
- Cover letter describing how you meet the required and preferred qualifications.
- Resume.
- List of three
(3) professional references.
- Writing sample of no more than three single-spaced pages, with one-inch margins and font size no
smaller than 11-point.
Only complete applications will be considered. Application review begins Monday,
March 2, 2026 and will continue until a qualified pool of applicants is identified.
#LI-AM1
Advertised Salary
Range: $71,000-83,000 commensurate with experience
Application Review Begins: 02-Mar-2026
Anticipated Start Date: 18-May-2026
Primary Campus University of Kansas Lawrence
Campus
FTE: 1.0
Reg/Temp: Regular
FLSA Status Administrative
Employee Class: U-Unclassified Professional Staff
Work Schedule M-F 8a-5p
Hybrid schedule possible, with one (1) day remote and four (4) days on-site: Non-negotiable.
Job
Family Administrative/Management-KUL
Conditions of Employment Contingent on Funding
Work Location Assignment Hybrid
Disclaimer The University of Kansas prohibits
discrimination on the basis of race, color, ethnicity, religion, sex, national origin, age, ancestry, disability, status as a veteran,
sexual orientation, marital status, parental status, gender identity, gender expression, and genetic information in the university's
programs and activities. Retaliation is also prohibited by university policy. The following person has been designated to handle inquiries
regarding the nondiscrimination policies and is the Title IX coordinator for all KU and KUMC campuses: Associate Vice Chancellor for the
Office of Civil Rights and Title IX, civilrights@ku.edu , Room 1082, Dole Human Development Center,
1000 Sunnyside Avenue, Lawrence, KS 66045, 785-864-6414, 711 TTY.
Job Tags
Temporary work, Work at office, Local area, Remote work