Beth DeCarolis receives Chancellor’s Gold ‘U’ for June

Nearly every successful operation has that person — the one who is always cool and steady regardless of what happens.

In UNMC Sponsored Programs Administration (SPAdmin), that person is Beth DeCarolis, grants and contracts specialist.

For example, during a tense office brain storm to solve a complex problem, DeCarolis surveyed the situation and then offered this observation: “I wonder whether we are rearranging the deck chairs on the Titanic.”

Beth DeCarolis

“That made us laugh, which in turn helped us relax and reframe the problem,” said Deb Vetter, DeCarolis’ supervisor. “Beth’s quiet, nonjudgmental nature is part of what made her statement so funny.”

For her cool and steady nature and her outstanding work, DeCarolis received the Chancellor’s Gold ‘U’ Award for the month of June.

Describe your job in laymen terms.

I work in “pre-award and non-financial post-award” administration — which I keep telling my family does not mean I am a grant writer. Instead, I assist departments as they submit grant applications and manage grant awards in a way that is compliant with university and sponsor policy.

What is your best on-the-job memory?

I fondly recall particularly exciting deadlines, such as the first NIH R01 mandatory electronic submission and the federal stimulus “challenge” grant competition, when we worked hard to submit a large number of applications. Also, I’m glad the days of boxing up hundreds of collated pages for NIH R01 paper submission deadlines are but a distant memory.

What is the best part of your job?

I’m fortunate to work with an incredible group of people, both within SPAdmin and across the university. They deserve a “Platinum U” award for making my job easier and fun. Also, in SPAdmin, we’re fond of saying, “Look at what we’re going to learn about today!” From new federal regulations to new submission systems, I enjoy continuously learning on the job.