UMSI adjunct lecturer and alumnus Michael Hess (MSI ’06) is one of four staff members the university has recognized for his role in supporting and strengthening the research enterprises of the University of Michigan.

Hess received the Research Technical Staff Recognition Award. This award recognizes staff members who have, independently or along with faculty, advanced the research mission of their unit in a way that extends beyond the ordinary fulfillment of a position’s duties.

Hess has supported U-M faculty for more than 15 years. As a solution architect lead and adjunct lecturer at the School of Information and an app programmer/analyst lead for the Medical School, Hess leads teams that provide technical expertise to six research projects in Michigan Medicine and the School of Information.

He supports technical systems for the School of Information, teaches four classes, and builds and maintains secure hosting for about 400 university websites across a variety of units.

Hess is a member of the Drupal Security Working group, and he also builds and maintains 20 different research projects across campus. In addition, Hess serves as an escalation point for technical issues web platforms that serve the research and educational goals of Michigan Medicine.

“The University of Michigan is the nation’s largest public research university, but it would be impossible for our campus community to generate this vast amount of research without the support and expertise of our talented research staff,” said Rebecca Cunningham, vice president for research.

Other staff members honored for their efforts were David Mulder, who received the Office of Research Exceptional Service Award and Teresa Herrick and Jane Sierra, who both received Research Administrator Recognition Awards.

“The ongoing health of our research enterprise will rely on people like David, Teresa, Jane and Michael, who all play a vital role in keeping the research enterprise running smoothly,” Cunningham said.

The award recipients will be honored at a banquet later this year.

Read the full story in The Record.