Office of Research Hires Development Veteran

Dr. Dena L. Jackson has been appointed as assistant vice president for research development in the Office of Research and will assume her new post effective April 1.

Jackson, formerly the assistant vice president for development and alumni relations, will be responsible for researching potential grant opportunities and supporting and encouraging faculty in securing extramural research funding.

“We’re very pleased to bring Dena’s expertise and professionalism to bear in some areas that can significantly assist our faculty and boost our research funding,” said Dr. Bruce Gnade, vice president for research.

Jackson played a key role in helping to secure funds for the UTeach Project in the School of Natural Sciences and Mathematics. She came to the UT Dallas Office of Development in March 2006, as the director of foundation relations, was promoted to acting assistant VP for Development, and then was named Assistant VP for Development and Alumni Relations.

In her new capacity as assistant VP of research development, Jackson plans to explore major interdisciplinary proposals and University/government/industry partnerships, and to provide training in grant development for faculty members.

“I’m starting with two main emphases,” Jackson said. “First, I’ll be working with faculty on multidisciplinary and multi-institution proposals for the National Science Foundation (NSF) and other governmental funding groups. These projects, such as NSF engineering research centers, are too big for any one professor to manage and still accomplish their own research and teaching.” Jackson will bring together diverse partners on proposals to ensure that UT Dallas offers the strongest applications possible.

“In addition, our office will be looking at ways to provide grant writing assistance to professors further ‘upstream’ than the Office of Research is currently able to do,” Jackson said. “Doing so will help grow the visibility and stature of UT Dallas while helping to increase the research dollars that flow to the university as we reach for the strategically important goal of $100 million per year or more in research expenditures.”