Department Administrator
Required Qualifications (as evidenced by an attached resume):
Bachelor's degree (foreign equivalent or higher). Five (5) years of full-time administrative experience. Experience managing major aspects of business, budget, and/or human resources operations. Experience with submission and/or management of research grant applications. Experience managing projects. Budget management experience. Staff oversight and supervisory experience.
Preferred Qualifications:
Master's degree (foreign equivalent or higher) in Business, Higher Education Administration, or a related field. Six (6) or more years of full-time administrative experience. Knowledge of SUNY State, Research Foundation (RF), and Stony Brook Foundation (SBF) budget, personnel, and purchasing policies & procedures. Familiarity with Renaissance School of Medicine (RSOM) practices and procedures.
Brief Description of Duties:
The Department Administrator is critical to the core research objectives, academic mission, and overall excellence of the Department. The responsibilities of this position are wide in scope and include Budget and Fiscal Management, HR Management and Supervision, Grant Administration, and administrative support to the Chair, faculty and staff. Within each of these areas of responsibility the Department Administrator acts with a high degree of autonomy on a multitude of complex tasks as detailed below. The Department Administrator assists and advises the Department Chair in each of these areas and acts as the primary liaison to a variety of high-level offices. Excellent organizational, time-management, and interpersonal skills are essential.
Duties:
Department Administration:
Provide leadership in managing all administrative aspects of running Department, including operational and strategic planning, fiscal management, academic and administrative oversight of facilities, equipment, and personnel.
Educate and assist faculty, staff, and students in navigating University and RSOM regulations, policies, and procedures in a variety of areas (e.g. events, travel, moving, reimbursement expenses, and benefit packages.).
Advise and assist faculty with pre-and post-award grant preparation and administration and supervise grants managements.
Maintain close communication with and provide assistance to the Chair on issues including budget and financial matters, grant administration, personnel issues, faculty promotion and tenure, and School of Medicine and University requests and regulations.
Serve as liaison and face of the Department between various administrative offices and units across the University and RSOM.
Assist in the supervision of the administrative staff for the Medical Science Training Program (MSTP).
Budget and Fiscal Management:
Manage all fiscal operations for the Department of Pharmacological Sciences from various funding sources, including State IFR, Research Foundation/Grants, IDC, SBF, matching funds, royalty, and Dean's funds.
Develop budget proposals, policies and fiscal guidelines that support Department goals and growth. Develop various projection reports and advise Chair on strategies to meet fiscal needs, implications and consequences.
Determine, monitor, and control expenditures required to manage the operational, research, and personnel expenses of the department. Ensure deadlines are met.
Track start-up funds and assist faculty with research award budget management.
Monitor and track allocations to ensure proper and accurate administration.
Work independently to resolve account discrepancies, working with various campus offices such as Procurement and Accounts Payable, Accounting, SBF Accounts Payable, Grants Management, Sponsored Programs, etc.
Maintain detailed and accurate records of revenues and expenses. Make projections of financial needs of the Department on both a short-term and an annual basis.
Troubleshoot problems and questions concerning Department and University/RSOM policies and procedures and convey information as needed. Ensure compliance with all State and Federal regulations.
Manage revenue and oversee monthly invoicing for ilab, IFRs, Core facilities and several T32 training grants.
Server as liaison with university comptrollers, grants, accounting, governmental agencies, foundations, etc. Communicate with high level administrative offices within SUNY.
Provide oversight for management of Departmental shared equipment in coordination with the Director of Facilities, including contract agreements, renewal dates, costs, and repairs. Coordinate acquisition of new equipment and supplies required for research and teaching with the Chair, faculty, and Director of Facilities.
Grant Administration:
Advise and assist principal investigators in the Department with grant submissions, preparation of grant packages, and the development of proposal budgets.
Assist faculty in monitoring research budgets and preparing financial analysis based on external agency funding, personnel costs and laboratory expenditures, and offer advice on such matters.
Assure compliance with sponsoring agencies and keep faculty informed for regulations and deadlines.
Track Departmental research grant activity. Certify effort and cost sharing of faculty and research personnel for accuracy and compliance with University/RSOM policies.
Identify salary offset funds and transactions. Prepare financial and productivity reports related to research grant proposals and grant awards of faculty for Dean's office.
Maintain a database with information on current faculty research awards.
Keep faculty informed of upgrades in electronic grant submissions through grants.gov, ASSIST and My Research and any other information provided by the Research Foundation.
Represent the Department on the Department Administrator Committee (DAC), to be fully informed of any upcoming changes and share information with faculty and staff.
Review and approve grant proposals to ensure that departmental and RSOM policies are being met.
Review and approve compliance requests to ensure that faculty and laboratories are meeting the rules in place.
Liaison with Sponsored Programs and Grants Management.
Human Resources Management and Supervision:
Responsible for HR and personnel-related activities for the Department consisting of faculty, admin staff, research staff, and students. Assure sufficient salary budget allotment for employees.
Oversee and administer personnel transactions such as appointments, renewals, promotions (APT promotions and NTP permanent appointments), changes, salary increases and terminations.
Develop and submit position descriptions and recruitment plans for new faculty via Interfolio and staff positions via TMS and assist project directors and their staff with same.
Provide support to and serve on Department search committees and assist with faculty recruitment efforts.
Oversee and lead Main Office, Grants Manager Specialists, Undergraduate and Graduate direct reports to include recruiting, hiring, setting up objectives, workload distribution, personnel issues, annual performance programs/ evaluations, counseling, approval for time off, and staff professional development.
Find opportunities for team training and skills advancement.
Provide directions for team members, coordinate projects, and update the staff.
Meet weekly to understand and make sure that essential duties are being met.
Oversee and lead the IT Director and Facilities Manager in repairs and changes that need to be addressed from time to time in addition to calls that come in for service.
Supervision of non-faculty personnel administration, including work study students.
Responsible for the development, review and continuing evaluation of all office procedures and recommend appropriate operational improvements. Review staffing needs with Chair.
Special Projects Administration:
Serve on the Finance Committee, Space Committee, Diversity Committee, and any other committee as appropriate and assigned
Participate in University test projects for implementing new systems such as My Research, ASSIST and TMS.
Assist in the development of budget and operational policies in consultation with Chair and Finance Committee and communicate with Department members.
Attend all faculty meetings.
Prepare special correspondence and reports for the Department and University/RSOM offices to include financial analysis and Department demographic information.
Liaison with internal/external departments.
Collaborate with faculty and staff regarding problem resolution and provide support in implementing content.
Ensure smooth administrative workflow throughout the Department and promote employee team effort.
Other duties or projects as assigned as appropriate to rank and departmental mission
Special Notes:
The Research Foundation of SUNY is a private educational corporation. Employment is subject to the Research Foundation policies and procedures, sponsor guidelines and the availability of funding. FLSA Exempt position, not eligible for the overtime provisions of the FLSA. Minimum salary threshold must be met to maintain FLSA exemption.
Essential Position: This has been designated as an essential position based on the duties of the job and the functions performed. Positions that are designated as such may be required to report to work/remain at work even if classes are canceled, and the campus is working on limited operations in an emergency.
For this position, we are unable to sponsor candidates for work visas.
Resume/CV and cover letter should be included with the online application.
Stony Brook University is committed to excellence in diversity and the creation of an inclusive learning, and working environment. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, national origin, religion, sex, pregnancy, familial status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, age, disability, genetic information, veteran status and all other protected classes under federal or state laws.
If you need a disability-related accommodation, please call the university Office of Equity and Access (OEA) at (631) 632-6280 or visit OEA (https://www.stonybrook.edu/commcms/oea/) .
In accordance with the Title II Crime Awareness and Security Act a copy of our crime statistics can be viewed here (https://www.stonybrook.edu/police/) .
Visit our WHY WORK HERE page to learn about the total rewards we offer.
SUNY Research Foundation: A Great Place to Work. (https://www.rfsuny.org/media/rfsuny/documents/hr/RFRecruitmentFlyer.pdf)
The starting salary range (or hiring range) to be offered for this position is noted below, it represents SBU's good faith and reasonable estimate of the range of possible compensation at the time of posting.
LI-SA1
Job Number: 2602840
Official Job Title: : Project Administrative Officer
Job Field : Administrative & Professional (non-Clinical)
Primary Location : US-NY-Stony Brook
Department/Hiring Area: : Dept Of Pharmacology
Schedule : Full-time
Shift : Day Shift Shift Hours: : 8:30 AM - 5:00 PM :
Posting Start Date : Aug 4, 2026
Posting End Date : Sep 4, 2026, 3:59:00 AM
Salary: : $105,000-$125,000
Appointment Type: : Regular
Salary Grade: : E99
SBU Area: : The Research Foundation for The State University of New York at Stony Brook
Req ID: 2602840
