ADMINISTRATION (Admin Core)

Stanford University, Stanford CA

Investigators

Linked publications, trials & patents

Abstract

PROJECT SUMMARY ? ADMINISTRATION CORE Stanford Cancer Institute's (SCI) Administration Core, under the leadership of David Rubenson, MS, MBA, Associate Director of Administration and Planning, supports the SCI mission to provide innovative research, patient care, and education. The core includes 18 employees who contribute administratively to the success of the basic, clinical, and population sciences, as well as to the training and educational mission of the Stanford Cancer Institute. The core provides direct administrative oversight of the Cancer Clinical Trials Office (CCTO), 8 faculty laboratories, 2 shared resources, and other assets. Overall, approximately 200 staff employees report through the administrative core. SCI administration covers: CCSG membership processes, shared resources oversight and support, coordination with SCI's consortium partner the Cancer Prevention Institute of California (CPIC), management of faculty assigned to SCI, oversight and control of SCI financial resources, seed grant administration, grants management, general administration and human resources, support for strategic planning, ESAB activities, and external and internal communications. The administrative core provides active support in planning and implementing scientific conferences and workshops. The core also plays a key role in outreach activities, publishing a quarterly newsletter that reaches more than 10,000 recipients, providing administrative support for a Community Engagement Program, and representing SCI at major events sponsored by outside foundations and advocacy groups. During the current grant period, the SCI administrative unit made the following improvements: 1) an expanded and refined structure that includes dedicated teams for financial analysis and for supporting multi- investigator grant applications including the CCSG; 2) incorporation of the PhD program in Cancer Biology into the administrative structure; 3) an expanded capacity for event planning as exemplified by the October 2014 symposium Tumor Heterogeneity: Implications for Targeted Therapy, attended by ~ 250 researchers; 4) institution of the OnCore® Biospeciman Management System (BSM) to insure connectivity between the Cancer Clinical Trials Office (CCTO) and the Tissue Procurement Shared Resource; and 5) support for centralization of all clinical trials personnel within SCI's CCTO. More generally, the administrative core has developed a robust structure that will allow it to accommodate to changing requirements in the years ahead. While individual senior leaders were rated highly at the last review, challenges remained in program integration, monitoring of shared resources, the population sciences, and administration. These issues led Dr. Mitchell to make substantial changes in the senior leadership team. The leaders are now highly interactive and engaged. The senior leadership team is responsible for strategic planning, program integration, and the evaluation of SCI's initiatives in research, clinical care, and training/education. The senior leaders provide oversight for SCI research programs, administration, shared resources, the CCTO, and the Protocol Review and Monitoring System. They are members of a broader executive committee that helps coordinate SCI activities with other activities across the University that could contribute to cancer research. The SCI senior leadership is responsible for coordinating across research domains and defining strategies and opportunities to maximize clinical translation, as well as identifying areas in which SCI research expertise can be deployed to address needs of the catchment area.