Kerry Peluso

Number of Years in Research Administration: 30

Institutions: Florida State University, Emory University, University of Pennsylvania, Rutgers University

Kerry Peluso is a CPA and MBA with over 30 years of research and grant administration experience. She also holds a doctoral degree in education with a concentration in learning design and human performance technology. Her research administration experience includes a background in both public and private Universities as well as experience in Medical and non-Medical institutions. She currently holds the position of Associate Vice President for Research Administration and Finance and is the Treasurer of the Florida State University Research Foundation. In this role, she oversees both the pre-and post-award central administration functions.  She is also responsible for the development and implementation of research administration policies as well as oversight of general research administration support activities related to compliance, training, communication, system development, reporting, and research administration performance metrics. She also oversees the financial activities of the Office of the Vice President for Research.

In her former position at Emory University, she oversaw both pre-and post-award (including financial) central administration functions. This included oversight of the activities related to effort reporting, facilities and administrative rate proposal preparation/negotiation, and the administration of service center activities.  Kerry was a leader in developing, planning, and implementing a successful restructuring of the research administration infrastructure at Emory from a traditional departmental support model to a shared services organization. Before joining Emory in February 2007, Kerry held the Director of Post Award Financial Administration position at the University of Pennsylvania. Her background also includes several years of experience as a Senior Accounting Manager at Rutgers University in the Division of Grant and Contract Accounting and five years of experience with proposal preparation and managing grants for non-profit organizations at the local/departmental level. She has led the development of research administration certification educational programs at Florida State University, Emory University, and the University of Pennsylvania. Beyond grants and research administration, Kerry’s background includes five years of experience in tax, private and public accounting.

Kerry served on the Council of Governmental Relations (COGR) Board of Directors, as a COGR Research and Regulatory Reform Committee member, and as an NCURA Faculty Member for the Leadership Workshop. She is an NCURA Peer Reviewer and has served in a variety of other roles for NCURA, including serving as Regional and National Treasurer, Financial Research Administration Workshop Faculty Member, Co-Editor for NCURA’s Magazine, Chair of NCURA’s Peer Review Select Committee, and Chair of NCURA’s National Development and Leadership Committee. In 2011, Kerry received the NCURA Distinguished Service Award and holds the NCURA Distinguished Educator designation. She is a frequent speaker at national conferences.