Melissa Sutherland kicks off a new year of research roundtables at the Decker School of Nursing

The Kresge Center for Nursing Research at Binghamton University’s Decker School of Nursing holds periodic roundtable events that bring faculty and student researchers together to share ideas, successes, failures and lessons learned. Building on its successful first year, the center kicked off the 2018-19 academic year Sept. 20 with a presentation by Melissa Sutherland.

A professor of nursing, acting director of the Kresge Center and an alumna who earned bachelor’s and master’s degrees in nursing from Decker, Sutherland also holds a doctorate in nursing from the University of Virginia and is a board-certified family nurse practitioner. Her research, which has been funded by the National Institutes of Health and the American Nurses Foundation, focuses on interpersonal violence among young women.

Addressing a group of more than a dozen attendees at the research roundtable, Sutherland presented “Grant Writing Tips and Challenges,” a compilation of knowledge gained throughout her career.

Among the advice Sutherland shared is that it’s okay to begin small. Researchers don’t need big-name grants when they’re starting off. Rather, Sutherland advised them to identify their skills and areas of expertise and focus on being published in those areas so their name gets associated with that research subject. She also recommended getting published as early in their career as possible. Building on those ideas, Sutherland suggested researchers get involved with professional organizations and make as many contacts as possible to increase their chance of being connected with a funding opportunity.

Sutherland also told researchers to do their homework — know the subject area, where funding money is available and how big the funding sources are. Also, don’t hesitate to get in touch with the contact person or program officer assigned to the proposal/mechanism. It’s fine to ask questions.

“The worst thing that will happen is you’ll get turned down and then you can move on,” Sutherland said.

Moving on following rejection is difficult, Sutherland explained, but necessary. There are a number of ways researchers can deal with being denied, she said, including paring back projects to accomplish elements with the funding you have (a lot can be done with a little, she pointed out), looking for alternative funding sources and adjusting their approach (if possible) so it’s more closely aligned with what the funder is looking for.

A few other tips Sutherland shared are:

• Build your team early and draft your letters of support.
  
• Set a schedule for yourself and stick to it. When you’re waiting for feedback or approval on one element, find another element you can accomplish so you don’t waste time.
  
• Recognize that there are things you can control and those you can’t.
  
• Don’t reinvent the wheel. Ask those within your organization who have successfully gained funding if they’re willing to share documents, processes and their own tips and tricks with you.
  

“We’re all in this together, building a community of research-scholars,” she said.

Finally, Sutherland’s last piece of advice to the group: “Celebrate the milestones along the way!”

Attending the Sept. 20 research roundtable were the following Decker faculty and staff: Nannette Cowen, Rosa Darling, Jean Dorak, Pam Stewart Fahs, Ann Fronczek, Mary Muscari, Mario Ortiz, Rosemarie Rizzo Parse, Patti Reuther, Michele Summers and Sarah Yurka. Also present were graduate assistants Edwin-Nikko Kabigting and Wendy Gallagher.