Oklahoma A&M system wins poster award for grant writing position

Tuesday, November 29, 2022

Media Contact: Harrison Hill | Senior Research Communications Specialist | 405-744-5827 | harrison.c.hill@okstate.edu

An innovative concept from Oklahoma State University to help increase funding at smaller universities has started to gain national acclaim.

For colleges and universities in the Oklahoma A&M system, most research and program funding comes from grants — both federal and state. These grants are tied to specific projects, and the application process can often be hard to navigate. That is where grant writers come in.

However, for smaller schools in the Oklahoma A&M system, it’s often more difficult to fund a grant writer position. OSU has an answer for that — it is the only land-grant institution that has a grant writer/developer position to help all system institutions.

Recently, OSU faculty and staff won the Best Poster of the Year award at the Society of Research Administrators International Poster Symposium during the society’s annual conference for their poster
"Increasing Grant Capacity at Smaller Institutions through Innovative Services." 

The presentation focused on a position created and funded by OSU in 2018 to help all institutions within the OSU A&M system — which consists of OSU, Langston University, Oklahoma Panhandle State University, Connors State College and Northeastern Oklahoma A&M.

Devon Hill, who was the first writer in this role, said the position has seen great success.

“We have been able to help teach administrators, both at OSU and our sister institutions, about best practices in grant writing,” Hill said. “The grant writers have emphasized articulating the institution’s need and then describing how the need will be met by the proposed activities — all while writing in a manner that is most likely to be funded by proposal reviewers.

“We found there was approximately a 300 percent return on our investment with this grant writer position, and the other schools have seen a huge increase in the external grant funding that they've received.” 

Now headed into its third year, Hill has since moved into a different grant writing position at OSU with Beth Wild now filling the position. Although she has changed roles, Hill still was a fundamental part of putting together and presenting the poster alongside OSU Associate Vice President of Research Christine Johnson and Beth Wild.

Hill and Dr. Johnson are both members of SRA International and when they heard of the competition, they knew OSU would have a strong case. 

“In advance of the annual conference, the organization has an open call for poster presentations,” Johnson said. “Devon had the idea to present how our grant writing resources are benefiting all institutions within the Oklahoma A&M system.”

Also at the conference, Hill received the Future of the Field award for her work with OSU. The award acknowledges those who are furthering the field of research administration and have demonstrated leadership among their peers and institutions in innovative ways.

“I tell people that if I'm doing my job right, nobody knows I was involved,”  Hill said. “My job is to make the case strong and make the staff who will be implementing the program look good, and the light should shine on them.”

Since its inception, the grant writer position for the Oklahoma A&M system has helped to acquire millions of dollars in grant funding for its respective colleges and universities. Highlights include funding for OPSU to increase its student support as Oklahoma’s only Hispanic serving institution along with video conference equipment for Connor State College to facilitate concurrent course opportunities for high school students, Hill said.

“Resources garnered by these grants are helping to grow the diversity at these institutions, which then leads to more diversity in the workforce and potentially in academia,” Hill said. “Additionally, when the system institutions collaborate on grant opportunities, we gather a broader swath of voices and experiences, which then makes us and Oklahoma stronger.”

Story By: Olivia Trolinger | olivia.trolinger@okstate.edu