Brag on a Broncho: Jerod Kersey, Grant Writer

May 2, 2019

Where are you from?

I grew up in Guymon, OK (the center of that thingy we call the Panhandle). After which I spent two years at Colby Community College in Colby, KS running cross-country and track & field. I moved to Edmond after graduation to figure out what I wanted to do next, and found UCO and the rest is pretty much history.

In the simplest way, describe what you do for work?

As a grant writer in the research administration field, the simplest way to describe my work is that I help to acquire funding from various sources to assist faculty in achieving their research and scholarly activities.

What kind of grants do you write, or name some neat ones you’ve gotten funded?

The College of Liberal Arts has provided me with a plethora of opportunities to write to many new and interesting funding agencies. Ranging from large federal programming in the Department of Education and National Endowment for the Humanities, to small, local foundations. The most interesting application that I have had the opportunity to work on has been the Institute of Museum and Library Services. It is a partnership grant between the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum and the Department of History & Geography’s Museum Studies Program. If funded, it will be an exciting project that will benefit many students. Further, the National Archives and Records Administration has some programming that I think would be fun to work on.

How long does it usually take to start, write, and submit a typical grant?

This is an interesting and multifaceted question. Grants can truly take up as much time as the PI (primary investigator) puts into them. Thankfully, many opportunities that would fit our faculty, are items that they have been previously working on, or had published. These items can easily be adjusted to fit a narrative, and with my help developing budgets and insuring that all application components are met, the process does not take nearly as long as it may seem. To be fair though, there are some opportunities that can (and should be) worked on for an extended period of time. Some grants are cyclical and come around each year with few to no changes. These projects generally can be tweaked throughout the year to make them the strongest they can be leading up to the submission date.

What’s your favorite show to binge watch?

My all-time favorite show is The Big Bang Theory. I grew up in Edmond with that show and am truly sad that it is coming to an end (May 16th).

What’s the most used app on your phone?

Probably the Messaging app or phone app. Keeping up with my wife and kids throughout the day, or trying to determine what I can do to help make their day a little easier.

Name one of your proudest achievements – personal or professional.

My proudest personal moment, outside of getting married and becoming a father, is earning All American honors in the 3000m Steeplechase. It was the culmination of years of work and support from my parents, and to cross the finish line and hear my dad tell me I had done it still gives me goosebumps to think about.

Favorite thing about the College of Liberal Arts?

The atmosphere and attitude of support from literally just about every single person. I have never worked in an organization where individuals generally want your well-being to be the best it can no matter what.