Senior analyst anticipates needs to keep research going

Nicole Suchy | Senior Principal Analyst | Higuchi Biosciences Center 

When asked what it’s like to work with Nicole Suchy, colleagues universally note her ability to anticipate research needs before being asked.

Suchy is the senior principal analyst at the Higuchi Biosciences Center, where she has served the biomedical research community for 20 years. 

HBC communications are a big part of her portfolio. Suchy writes and distributes the center’s monthly bulletin and rebuilt its website — along with 18 others for affiliated labs and programs — in KU’s new content management system. Faculty praise her attention to detail in these projects. 

“Nicole is always extremely responsive, often fulfilling requests for changes within a day. What’s even more impressive is how proactive she is with maintaining the sites,” said Paulyn Cartwright, director of the Office for Diversity in Science Training and professor of ecology & evolutionary biology. “She will flag out-of-date information or make suggestions for updating. Maintaining an up-to-date web presence is very important to the success of our programs, and I am so grateful to Nicole for her dedication and high standards that help ensure that our public presence is always current and professional.”

Beyond communications, Suchy also directly supports to principal investigators. She provides detailed reports to faculty and staff and helps organize and run symposia and seminars. She also programs and maintains many databases that manage HBC pre- and post-award data and facilitate event registration and abstract submissions for symposia and seminars. By automating tasks when possible, Suchy makes things easier for coworkers.

“It was such a pleasure to work with her,” a former colleague said. “She is a major factor in making HBC the success that it is.” 

Suchy is retiring later this year when the Higuchi Biosciences Center closes, and some of her responsibilities will be transferred to other offices as the university re-envisions the future framework to support biomedical research at KU. Those who have met with her to transition these projects echo what longtime colleagues have said. 

“Nicole is a gracious colleague with a knack for anticipating needs and meeting them with creative solutions. She takes it upon herself to learn new skills and systems so that she can be as helpful as possible to those she supports,” said Mindie Paget, director of external affairs and assistant vice chancellor for diversity, equity, inclusion & belonging in the Office of Research. “That care is apparent in the detailed preparations she is making to hand off her responsibilities when she retires. She will be missed at KU.”