Gilstrap, Kay

Kay Gilstrap is the Director of Internal Controls & Policy Development for the University Research Centers at Georgia State University.  She leads a team of research administrators who manage all pre-and post-award administration and a business manager who manages all HR activities, non-sponsored contracts, and other high-level administration for five very active research centers.  She is a founding member of the Research Administration Departmental (RAD) Group and serves on various committees serving the research enterprise at Georgia State.  She is also a lead instructor for the GSU Panther TRACKS program, CRA Summer Camp, and CFRA Summer Camp.

Kay began her Research Administration Career as general administrative support and eventually as a manager of business administration and research administration in the School of Electrical and Computer Engineering at the Georgia Institute of Technology.  After many years in that position, she moved to the School of Chemistry and Biochemistry where she was the Associate Director of Financial Operations.  She and her team managed all financial processes for the school.   She left the Georgia Institute of Technology in 2011 to begin her career at Georgia State University.

Kay has been a member of the National Council of University Research Administrators since 2007.  In that time, she was elected to serve as the southeastern region’s (Region III) Treasurer (2012-2014), Chair (2015-2018), and  Regionally Elected Board Member (2019-2020).  She served as the CO-Chair of the 2019 National Annual Meeting and has numerous workshops and concurrent sessions at regional and national meetings.  She currently serves on the Financial Management Committee and Departmental Co-Editor for the NCURA Magazine.  She is also a current member of the NCURA Executive Leadership Program and is a Financial Research Administration Traveling Workshop faculty member.

Kay is a Certified Research Administrator.