The MCC Administration's expertise in organization and facilitation removes obstacles and barriers to research, allowing MCC members to focus on science and translation. Under the leadership of new Associate Director for Administration, Seanne Falconer, MBA, FACHE, Administration drives the human resources, communications, community engagement, and non-science infrastructural activities necessary to achieve the mission and vision of the MCC. MCC Administration also conducts rigorous evaluations of progress towards the goals and objectives of MCC's Strategic Plan and continues to refine and improve practices and processes to provide excellent, cost-effective services, including the development of multiple grant management software/database systems. Administration includes 120 employees who provide support for the basic, clinical, and population research and educational missions of the MCC, as well as for the 229 research members from 53 UMN departments in 13 colleges. MCC collaborates across the UMN to showcase the collaborative opportunities and research resources of the MCC when recruiting faculty, resulting in the hiring of 33 new members since 2013. The MCC FY17 budget was $19.5M, including $2.3M (13%) in support from the CCSG. Recent major achievements by MCC Administration include renovating 7000 ft2 of space to accommodate new research collaborations; creating a Shared Resource Network in a mutually beneficial partnership with the Mayo Clinic Cancer Center; establishing the Community Engagement and Education Program to engage and educate communities about cancer prevention, treatment, survivorship, and clinical research; launching the Research Development Office to provide proactive services to build strategic capacity; and supporting strategic initiatives to increase solid-tumor therapeutic clinical trials accruals by 13% in 4 years. The grants administration team managed and supported the submission of 534 proposals (429 new) since 2013, totaling over $18 million in direct costs. This research portfolio includes an NCI training grant; an ACS institutional research grant; multiple U01s; and complex, multicomponent grants, including 5 P01s, a U54, and several multiple-PI, multi-institution grants. The administration revamped the pilot grant process to ensure that funding is aligned with the Strategic Plan's priorities, and implemented a return-on-investment (ROI) analysis on all pilot awards. During the previous grant period, pilot grant investments produced an ROI of 648%, converting $3.8M in pilot funding into $24.8M in cancer-focused research grants. MCC Administration was integral in the creation of the Minnesota Cancer Clinical Trials Network, which was designed to improve cancer outcomes by providing greater access to cancer clinical trials. The State legislature appropriated the initiative $4M annually, in perpetuity, and MCC immediately established a detailed budget, hired dedicated staff, convened partner organizations, defined legal contracting aspects of a statewide network, and issued an RFA to award funds to clinics throughout the state.
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