AVP Research Computing

Overview

The Associate Vice President (AVP) for Research Computing serves as the senior executive responsible for the vision, strategy, and execution of institution-wide research computing infrastructure and services. As a member of the University’s IT and research leadership, the AVP oversees the High-Performance Computing (HPC) and data-intensive research environments that enable world-class, interdisciplinary research across all academic disciplines. The AVP provides thought leadership in advanced computing infrastructure, leads enterprise-scale research computing initiatives, and ensures alignment with evolving faculty needs, regulatory requirements, and national standards.

The role engages faculty, research leadership, and external agencies to position the university as a national leader in computational science and digital research infrastructure.

• Strategic Leadership and Research Advancement
  • Lead the development and execution of a long-range strategic plan for research computing that supports the university’s R1 research mission, including investments in HPC, research storage, AI/ML environments, cloud platforms, secure data enclaves and staffing.
  • Collaborate with the Vice President for Research and IT, Deans, and faculty leaders to define institutional priorities, align resources, and support cutting-edge, interdisciplinary research initiatives.
  • Represent the University in national and international consortia focused on research computing infrastructure, research data governance, and secure research computing.
  • Serve as a strategic advisor to executive leadership on research policy, funding, and risk management related to advanced research computing.
• Operational Oversight of Research Computing and Data Services
  • Oversee Operations, performance, and lifecycle management of the University’s research computing environment, including HPC clusters and cloud platforms.
  • Lead cross-functional technical teams responsible for system design, user support, research application integration, and compliance with research security standards (e.g., NIST 800-171, FISMA).
  • Oversee service-level agreements, uptime metrics, downtime and maintenance procedures and communications and annual investment planning to ensure the environment remains resilient, scalable, and aligned with faculty needs.
• Faculty Engagement, Consultation, and Research Enablement
  • Act as a campus-wide leader and trusted advisor to faculty and research teams across disciplines, proactively identifying research needs and aligning computational services accordingly.
  • Lead outreach, onboarding, and education programs that expand awareness of research computing services and improve access and usability for all research teams, especially those in emerging or underserved disciplines.
  • Oversee consultation and proposal development services that support grant applications, including effort related to compute budgeting, data management planning, and infrastructure letters of support.
• Organizational Leadership and Talent Development
  • Build and lead a high-performing organization that includes technical staff, research facilitators, computational scientists and systems administrators; implement structures that promote career development, operational excellence, and interdisciplinary collaboration.
  • Promote an inclusive, service-oriented, and research-centric culture, emphasizing responsiveness, creativity, and collaboration with faculty and campus and community partners.
  • Establish internal governance structures to prioritize investments, align service delivery, and foster transparency.
• Funding Strategy and Grant Support
  • Develop and execute strategies for sustained funding of research computing, including cost recovery models, external grants, and institutional partnerships.
  • Collaborate with principal investigators on major federal research infrastructure proposals (e.g., NSF MRI, NIH S10), providing technical input, budget guidance, and institutional coordination.
  • Serve as PI or co-PI on institutional-scale cyberinfrastructure grants and partnerships.

The position is listed as hybrid. Please note a substantial percentage of time is spent on campus and at the Medical Center with peers, colleagues and key stake holders.