Developing Administrative Practices to Support Research

Susan Dennehy is an associate department administrator for the Department of Medical Social Sciences. She has been at Northwestern for nearly 11 years, and Dennehy’s work has helped shape programs and departments within Feinberg, at the Pritzker School of Law, and the Global Poverty Research Lab.  

She studied philosophy and politics at Oberlin College and holds a PhD in jurisprudence and social policy from the University of California, Berkeley. 

Where is your hometown?  

I am originally from Orange County, New York and grew up in New York State. I fell in love with the Midwest when I went to college in Ohio.   

What led you to Northwestern? 

I came to Northwestern in 2014 to help launch the Master of Science in Law program, a degree offered in the Pritzker School of Law. I was about eight years into my career and looking for the next challenge, and I found it appealing to work in an academic start-up leading the creation of processes and policies for an innovative and ground-breaking master’s program. We had to create everything de novo, and it was exciting to think about how to build an operational infrastructure that would serve various stakeholders and sustain itself over time. I’ve always been very organized and process minded, and thinking about the current moment and how decisions made now will affect the future was an exciting way to deploy my skills. I find it very rewarding to have built a career utilizing my skills to ensure the day-to-day operations of an academic unit run smoothly, that everyone has the information they need when they need it so they can act on it quickly and efficiently and ultimately supporting researchers to do their best work with their best energy. 

What are you currently working on?  

I’ve been at Northwestern for nearly 11 years and have worked in several schools in Evanston and Chicago and now I am the associate department administrator in Medical Social Sciences, which was founded in 2009. MSS is past its “start-up” phase and is now scaling to size.  

How does your work support the research enterprise at Feinberg?  

I am leading the development of standard operating procedures (SOPs) across the department, which involves gathering input from all the stakeholders, developing internal policies and practices in consultation with subject matter experts, drafting instructions and guidelines, creating forms and trackers, soliciting feedback on drafts and leading a communications campaign to inform the MSS community of the availability of finalized SOPs.  I really love this initiative because I get to connect with people in different roles across our department and learn what they need to make their own jobs easier. 

Why do you enjoy working at Northwestern? 

Northwestern continues to be my professional home because there is a truly collaborative culture where colleagues are cheering you on and want to see you be successful and there are opportunities to pay it forward. Northwestern offers amazing benefits including professional development opportunities, and I am always referring people to the abundant resources available for well-being support, becoming the best manager and leader you can be, skill-building courses and workshops, etc. This is a place where there are always opportunities to grow.