While #NORDP2019 officially kicks off Monday, April 29, there are many opportunities on Sunday, April 28, to connect with old friends, meet some new ones, orient yourself to the organization and the conference, and volunteer. For those of you coming in on Sunday, please consider taking advantage of the following:
2:30-4:30 pm: Committee Meetings
All members are welcome (and encouraged!) to join NORDP Committees. NORDP is a volunteer-run organization, and we are always looking for members to get involved. You can explore Committee options here. For those who can’t make it, you also will be able to learn more about Committees and speak with members during the Ideas Showcase on Tuesday afternoon.
4:30-5:30 pm: Activities to Engage with Old and New Members
- New Member/ First-time Attendee Orientation & Networking: The Member Services Committee welcomes new members and first-time attendees to connect with veteran conference-goers. Meet your Ambassador, and learn how to make the most of conference opportunities. Hear from NORDP President Karen Eck and President-Elect Karen Fletcher, and participate in networking activities to meet new friends.
- Mentoring Meet-up: Newly matched Mentor/Mentee pairs will meet for the first time face-to-face and get their mentoring relationship off to a solid start. Past Mentee/Mentor pairs also are invited to attend.
- PUI Kick-off: Congratulations to the newest NORDP Affinity Group–for Primarily Undergraduate Institutions (PUIs)! If you’re interested in engaging with this group of NORDP professionals to share perspectives and best practices and contribute to the group’s planning and goals, join them on Sunday.
- Sponsor Opportunities: Our conference sponsors will be set up and ready to answer your questions about the tools and services they can provide to enhance your RD activities.
5:30-7 pm: Welcome Reception
Our unofficial kick-off! Before heading out for dinner, grab a drink and mingle with your fellow conference-goers. There are multiple built-in networking opportunities throughout the conference–and these are wonderful chances to expand your base of knowledge and contacts. Remember your business cards!
7 pm: Dinner Options
Several dinner engagements will be taking place, including Committee Dinners, New Member Dinners and Sponsor Receptions & Dinners. If you’re looking for additional options, visit our conference website or use our interactive map for recommendations from locals.
8-11 pm: Research on the Rocks
This is the inaugural of a new evening option–an informal opportunity to mix and mingle after conference hours in the hotel bar.
Volunteering
There is still a plethora of opportunities to donate your time at the conference! Lead a walk/run/bike, host a networking dinner, commit to #NORDP2019 #tweet #promos, or help run the registration desk. View all options on the website here.
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We hope to see you at the Conference, which will be held April 29 – May 1, 2019, at the Omni Providence Hotel in Providence, RI. For more information about the conference program, visit http://www.nordp.org/conferences. Follow @NORDP_official on Twitter for all the latest #NORDP2019 updates.
As the go-to reviewer for the applications and articles of my grad school classmates at Penn, I found that I loved reading about various areas of research, not focusing just on my protein of interest. After graduation, I found my way to the American Association for Cancer Research where I wore many hats, including grant writer and review committee administrator. I then went on to another cancer research foundation to manage their grant portfolio. In this role, I did everything from RFA creation to peer review to awarded grant oversight. Having those close experiences with grant applications made me fall in love with the early phase of research: the time when a PI can dream about what they want to do and how to do it. It also allowed me to continue to have broad exposure to many types of research.
He also is a research affiliate at MIT.
hospitality industry, followed by directing customs brokerage services for U.S. importers. In the early part of the millennium, I returned to the university as a non-traditional student to earn an MBA and an M.A. in Spanish, in part because my spouse accepted a tenure-track position at Texas Tech University. As I was contemplating the next chapter in my professional career, a position was serendipitously announced – as a research associate for a Department of Education-funded program that was working to internationalize curriculum to serve faculty, students, and the U.S. trade community. This position merged my newly acquired academic skill set with my business experience in international trade. From there, I was hooked. I was fortunate to have a great faculty mentor who took the time to introduce me to and help me navigate both the research and funding environments, while the college supported my professional development through attendance at various grant writing and research workshops. As the Rawls College enhanced its focus on the importance of obtaining grant funding, I was promoted to my current position of Director of Grants and Outreach.
Manager of the Research Office. Over the years, I have developed strong leadership skills which have enabled me to build a solid record of success in guiding my team to meet its objectives. I have contributed significantly towards maintaining the Politecnico’s outstanding record of success in research fundraising (particularly from EU calls). Under my leadership, the Politecnico has become the most successful research university in Italy. Currently, I am Chair of the Vision 2020 Network Advisory Board and Secretary of NCURA Region VIII.
“Day to day, what does inclusion look like at your institution?”
Providence Waterplace Park and Riverwalk
RISD Museum
Northwestern. Where did the time go? These years included 16+ years doing R&D at Dow Chemical, 9 years as a professor at Taylor University, and 5 years in the College of Engineering Office of Research at University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (UIUC).
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