Posting Details

Request to Recruit

Position Title
Director of Contracts and Grants Administration

Location
Boone NC

Faculty Rank

Provide Rank

Position Number
099911

Department
Contracts and Grants Accounting - 415102

Position Summary Information

Primary Purpose

Division of Research and Innovation

The Director of Contracts and Grants Administration position reports to the Vice Chancellor of Research and Innovation and provides strategic and operational leadership for the full sponsored project lifecycle within the Office of Research and Innovation. This position ensures that faculty, staff, and institutional partners receive high-quality support from proposal preparation and submission through award closeout, while maintaining strong compliance, financial stewardship, and service-oriented practices. The Director supervises multiple Associate Directors and provides leadership for a team of approximately 20 staff members. In this role, the CGA director will provide leadership, direction, and accountability for administration and accounting functions across the post-award lifecycle of grants and contracts, including post-award financial support, reporting, and closeout.

Minimum Qualifications

Master's degree in business administration, public administration, accounting, finance, higher education administration, research administration, or a related field.

• Minimum of 8 years of progressively responsible experience in sponsored programs administration, research administration, grants management, contract and grant accounting, or a closely related field.
• Minimum of 5 years of supervisory or management experience leading professional staff and complex administrative operations.
• Demonstrated knowledge of federal sponsored project regulations, Uniform Guidance, sponsor requirements, and research administration best practices.
• Experience managing pre-award and post-award functions, including proposal submission, award administration, compliance, and financial oversight.
• Demonstrated ability to interpret regulations, exercise independent judgment, and communicate effectively with diverse stakeholders.
• Demonstrated ability to lead with a compass toward serving faculty and researcher needs while balancing with critical, reliable compliance requirements.

License/Certification Required

Preferred Qualifications

A certified research administrator (CRA) credential is preferred.

More than 10 years of progressively responsible experience in research administration or sponsored programs leadership.

• Experience leading both sponsored programs, contracting and grant accounting functions within a university or research-intensive environment.
• Experience supervising managers or directors and leading large, multi-functional teams.
• Professional certification such as Certified Research Administrator (CRA), Certified Pre-Award Research Administrator (CPRA), or Certified Financial Research Administrator (CFRA).

Essential Duties and Responsibilities

Leadership and Strategic Administration

Provide leadership and oversight for all post-award administration and accounting functions across the Office of Research and Innovation.

• Manage the daily operations of the CGA department, ensuring effective coordination across pre- and post-award functions, contract negotiation, closeout, and reporting.
• Serve as a key advisor to the Vice Chancellor of Research and Innovation for research administration operations, financial compliance, staffing, systems, and strategic initiatives.
• Develop and implement strategic plans, operational priorities, and performance measures that advance institutional research and innovation goals.
• Lead organizational change initiatives, process improvements, and technology implementations that improve efficiency, transparency, and service delivery.
• Establish clear expectations, workflows, service standards, and performance measures that support timely, accurate, compliant, and customer-oriented service to faculty and campus partners.

Collaboration with Pre-Award Administration

Collaborate with the Director of Sponsored Programs on processes to ensure the effective integration of pre-award processes with the post-award compliance needs to execute the resulting agreements, including processes such as the review, preparation, negotiation, and execution of incoming and outgoing contracts, subawards, and research-related agreements.

• Share responsibility with the Vice Chancellor of Research and Innovation for ensuring that all sponsored project award implementations comply with federal, state, sponsor, and university requirements.
• Maintain productive relationships with sponsoring agencies, partner institutions, industry collaborators, and other external stakeholders.

Award Set-up, Contracts, and Agreements Negotiations

Oversee award intake, review, negotiation, set-up, and handoff processes to ensure awards are established accurately and efficiently.

• Lead or supervise contract and agreement negotiations related to sponsored programs, including grants, contracts, subawards, data use agreements, confidentiality agreements, material transfer agreements, and other research-related agreements as appropriate.
• Coordinate with the Office of General Counsel, academic units, principal investigators, sponsors, and external partners to resolve contractual, regulatory, financial, and operational issues.
• Support private sector and external collaborations by ensuring that sponsored project agreements are structured to protect the university while enabling timely, productive partnerships.
• Oversee processing of post-award program reporting and authorization of project change actions.

Post-award Reporting and Financial Administration Support

Oversee post-award financial administration, including financial system fund setup, sponsor reporting, invoicing, financial monitoring, effort and cost-share tracking and reporting support, budget revisions, expenditure review, and closeout.

• Ensure sponsored project financial activity is accurate, timely, compliant, and aligned with sponsor terms and institutional, federal and State requirements.
• Provide leadership for financial reporting, analysis, forecasting, and issue resolution related to sponsored projects.
• Partner with principal investigators, departments, colleges, finance offices, and central administration to address financial questions and support responsible project management.

Research Administration Infrastructure and Continuous Improvement

Lead efforts to strengthen institutional research administration infrastructure through the development of policies, procedures, guidelines, best practices, and service standards.

• Collaborate with ORI units, Finance, General Counsel, Human Resources, Information Technology, academic colleges, and other campus partners to improve interdependent business processes and support research growth.
• Identify opportunities to leverage technology, automation, and data-informed decision-making to improve operational effectiveness.
• Ensure the maintenance, integrity, and reporting of sponsored project data and records for institutional leadership and external stakeholders.

Customer Service, Outreach, and Training

Foster a highly responsive, service-oriented culture that supports faculty, staff, administrators, and external sponsors while maintaining appropriate institutional oversight.

• Facilitate communication and problem-solving among colleges, principal investigators, research administrators, and financial staff to improve processes and address operational challenges.
• Develop and deliver training, educational programs, guidance materials, and workshops related to sponsored programs administration, financial management, and compliance.
• Promote a campus culture that supports responsible growth in sponsored research, scholarship, creative activities, and innovation.

Personnel Leadership and Staff Development

Supervise, mentor, and evaluate CGA staff and provide overall leadership for a staff of approximately 20 employees.

• Recruit, develop, and retain highly qualified staff committed to excellence in service, compliance, and operational effectiveness.
• Empower staff to exercise sound judgment, solve problems proactively, and assume ownership of assigned responsibilities.
• Promote professional development, succession planning, workload management, and continuous learning across the unit.
• Foster a collaborative, solutions-oriented, and professional team culture grounded in accountability, continuous improvement, compliance, and service.

Type of Position
Full Time Position

Staff/Non-Faculty
Staff/Non-Faculty

VISA Sponsorship?
VISA sponsorship is not available for this position. All candidates must be eligible to work and live in the U.S.

Appointment Type
1.0

Work Schedule/Hours
Mon-Fri, 8:00 - 5:00 pm

Number of Hours Per Week
40

Number of Months Per Year
12

Mandatory Staff
No

Suggested Salary Range
$133,276 - $138,000

Physical Demands of Position

To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform each essential job duty satisfactorily. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable qualified individuals with disabilities to perform essential job functions.

Posting Details Information

Posting Date
08/31/2026

Closing Date
09/27/2026

Open Until Filled
No

Evaluation of Applications Begins
09/07/2026

Proposed Date of Hire
11/02/2026

Special Instructions to Applicants

Please attach required documents:

• Cover Letter
• Resume
• List of References with Contact Information

Finalists will be subject to a criminal background check prior to the offer of employment. All candidate names and information will remain confidential; however, finalists invited to campus may be asked to waive confidentiality to engage with the broader campus community. References will not be contacted without a candidate's prior knowledge and consent.

Search Chair Name
Christine Hendren

Search Chair Email
[email protected]

Quick Link
https://appstate.peopleadmin.com/postings/55912

Posting Number
201501836P