ORD Staff

Beth Hodges
Director

2025 Westcott North Annex
(850) 644-2257  |  bhodges@fsu.edu

As Director of the Florida State University Office of Research Development, Beth is responsible for the overall activities conducted by the office. Beth joined the FSU Office of Research in 1997, after serving for several years as a US Congressional staff member. Beth was brought on to assist with federal activities, and, as priorities changed, became increasingly more involved in faculty services.  Meeting and working with faculty to aid them with funding identification and bringing groups together to discuss research interests, she laid the groundwork for what was soon to be a research development effort by the Vice President for Research.  In 2013, Beth was tapped to become the director of the new Office of Research Development (ORD).  Since its inception until now, ORD has worked with hundreds of faculty to support their efforts to secure extramural research funding and initiate and nurture critical partnerships throughout the institutional research enterprise.

Rachel Goff-Albritton
Assistant Director

2021 Westcott North Annex
(850) 644-3044  |  r.goffalbritton@fsu.edu

Dr. Rachel Goff-Albritton serves as the Assistant Director in the Florida State University Office of Research Development. She works primarily with early-career faculty, providing valuable resources to help faculty with individualized grantsmanship goals. During one-on-one meetings, she provides faculty at all career levels with grant proposal development support.  Rachel helps faculty navigate the contacts within the research offices and research procedures across campus.  She works with colleagues from state-wide and national research development associations to develop resources and best practices to assist FSU researchers. Rachel earned a doctoral degree from the University of South Florida, a master’s degree at the University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill, and her Bachelors of Arts at Florida State University, in Communication Sciences and Disorders.  Rachel has also worked clinically as a speech-language pathologist for ten years, providing rehabilitation and educational resources to individuals with aphasia, a language disorder acquired after a stroke or brain injury.  Rachel has a passion for laying a foundation for sustainable research growth at FSU. 

Grace Adkison
Program Manager: FSU Council on Research and Creativity

2023 Westcott North Annex
(850) 645-5751  |  gadkison@fsu.edu

Grace Adkison serves as the Council on Research and Creativity Program Manager, and has been with ORD since July 2016. As the CRC Program Manager, Grace is responsible for facilitating meetings of the Council, and assists them by educating faculty and staff on the research funding programs provided by the CRC. She also provides administrative oversight to awardees of these programs. Grace is your “go-to” person for all things CRC, be it submissions, revisions, no cost extensions, or any other issue or question you may have.  Grace came to ORD after spending four years at Sponsored Research Administration. She earned her B.S. in Interior Design from Florida State University.

Mike Mitchell
Program Manager, Strategic Initiatives

2020 Westcott North Annex
(850) 644-9511  |  mike.mitchell@fsu.edu

Mike serves as a consultant for faculty seeking external grant support. His main role is to help with planning, writing, and editing research proposals, with a special emphasis on multi-disciplinary and center-level projects. In his time at FSU Mike has helped to coordinate proposals to the Department of Energy’s Energy Frontier Research Centers, and National Science Foundation’s Materials Research Science and Education Center, Engineering Research Center, Science and Technology Center programs, as well as providing editing and planning services for numerous single-investigator proposals.

Mike joined ORD in 2015 after serving as a Policy Analyst and Program Manager for the Florida Office of Energy, specializing in alternative fuels and agricultural energy use. He successfully led project teams in grant applications to the US Department of Energy and Department of Agriculture, obtaining over $17 million for his projects. 

Evangeline Ciupek
Professional Development and Resource Specialist

2022 Westcott North Annex
850-645-9306  |  eciupek@fsu.edu

Professional Development and Resource Specialist in the Office of Research Development, Evangeline prepares and coordinates ORD’s events, including workshops, trainings, and research networking events. She develops and disseminates grant writing and grant proposal development resources. She hosts and produces ORD's podcast Journeys in Research. She also serves as administrator for FSU’s Limited Submissions portal where faculty may submit preproposals for selective grant organizations that allow only one applicant per institution.

Evangeline earned her MA in Theatre Studies at Florida State University, where she taught theatre courses as a teaching assistant. Since then, she has taught theatre at Tallahassee Community College and has been an active member of the local theatre scene. She has directed, acted in, and sound engineered multiple productions for local companies including Theatre TCC!, Theatre Tallahassee, Tallahassee Hispanic Theatre, Quincy Music Theatre, and the Monticello Opera House. During her undergraduate degree, she was a reporter and page designer for her campus newspaper The Bells. 

Anthony Gomez

Anthony Gomez is a student assistant for the Office of Research Development. In this role, he identifies funding opportunities for faculty and assists staff with various projects. Anthony is a student in the FSU College of Business majoring in Finance and intends to pursue a career in that field.

Cece Pierre

Cece Pierre is a student assistant for the Office of Research Development. In this role, she identifies funding opportunities for faculty and assists other staff with various projects, including event planning and coordination.  She was formerly an employee with the Department of Children and Families as a self-sufficiency representative. Cece is currently a part of the Unconquered Scholars Program of FSU.  She is a student in the FSU College of Social Work, minoring in psychology, in order to pursue a career as a Licensed Clinical Social Worker.