PolARMA Members
Ewa Mendec, President of the Board
Long-standing staff member of the Silesian University of Technology, working at the Project Management Centre in Gliwice, where she heads the Office for National Projects. Since the end of 2024 she has served as Vice-President of the Forum Administracji Akademickiej and co-created its Project Thematic Section. From 2025 she has been President of the Polish Association of Research Managers and Administrators PolARMA. She completed postgraduate management studies based on an MBA framework at SGH Warsaw School of Economics. As an expert of the Horizontal Contact Point, she specialises in managing research grants and organising training on applying for European projects. Contact: ewa.mendec@polsl.pl
Lidia Tomaszewska, Vice President of the Board
Head of the Project Support Department at SGH Warsaw School of Economics, responsible for the administrative and financial support of projects implemented at the university, including both national and international initiatives. She works with the SGH management on initiatives to professionalise project management and co-organises activities related to the development of the university’s project infrastructure.
Tomasz Poprawka, Board Member
Holds a PhD in plant biology (University of East Anglia, John Innes Centre, Norwich, United Kingdom). He has conducted research in laboratories in Poland, Belgium, the United Kingdom and Japan. Since 2010 he has worked in research programme management, initially at the Foundation for Polish Science, where he was responsible for initiatives supporting researchers and the development of scientific potential. Since 2018 he has been with the Polish Science Contact Agency (PolSCA) of the Polish Academy of Sciences in Brussels and, since 2020, has headed the office, supporting the participation of Polish institutions in EU framework programmes.
Contact: tomasz.poprawka@polsca.pan.pl
Anna Smurzyńska, Treasurer
Head of the Project Management Section at the Project Management Centre of Wrocław University of Economics and Business. She is responsible for a team that supports the preparation and implementation of projects funded from national and European sources. She acts as project manager for numerous initiatives, including within Horizon 2020, NAWA and projects on accessibility and institutional development.
Contact: anna.smurzynska@ue.wroc.pl
Katarzyna Pasik-Król, Secretary
Director of the Centre for Innovation and Business at Wrocław University of Science and Technology, responsible for developing the university’s cooperation with its socio-economic environment, building partnerships with industry and coordinating R&D and implementation projects. In 2020–2025 she headed the Projects Department, overseeing the preparation and delivery of national and international projects, including those financed from EU funds. In 2024–2025 she chaired the Steering Committee of the Forum of Project Management Offices of Technical Universities (TUPMO), co-developing nationwide standards for professional project management.
Contact: katarzyna.pasik@pwr.edu.pl
Katarzyna Górak-Sosnowska, Chair of the Committee
Professor of social sciences at SGH Warsaw School of Economics. She heads the Middle East and Central Asia Unit at the Institute of International Studies. Her research focuses on the socio-economic issues of the Middle East and North Africa, Islam and Muslim communities, and popular culture. Since 2018 she has served as President of the Forum Administracji Akademickiej, actively contributing to the professionalisation of university administration.
Daniel Puch, Committee Member
Head of the Office for Development and International Programmes at Bialystok University of Technology and, since September 2025, Director of the Department for the European Regional Development Fund at the Podlaskie Marshal’s Office. He is responsible for the preparation, coordination and implementation of development projects and international cooperation programmes, including initiatives aimed at improving teaching quality and accessibility for people with special needs. He works with universities on strategic planning and the implementation of projects financed from national and EU funds.
Contact: danielpuch@wp.pl
Iwona Trochimczyk-Sawczuk, Committee Secretary
PSpecialist in the Research Support Team at the Institute of Slavic Studies, Polish Academy of Sciences in Warsaw. She holds a legal and economic background and has over 20 years’ experience in preparing, implementing and settling research grants funded from national and foreign sources, including projects financed directly by the European Commission and from structural funds. At the Institute of Slavic Studies PAS she supports researchers in securing and delivering research funding, implements open science standards and institutional grant policies, and actively supports international collaboration in infrastructural and research projects. For over 20 years she has also co-created and managed NGOs delivering social projects, coordinating the substantive and financial implementation of initiatives carried out with national and international partners.
Contact: itrochimczyksawczuk@gmail.com
Łukasz Pieczonka
Expert with long-standing experience in international research and education programmes and EU research and innovation policy. Since 2024 he has worked at the PolSCA Office of the Polish Academy of Sciences in Brussels, where he monitors EU research policies, with particular focus on the Horizon Europe programme and preparations for FP10. He designs training and networking initiatives for RMAs, co-organises thematic events and supports consortia in applying for research grants. In parallel, he is project manager of the IMPULSE project at Jagiellonian University, where he completed degrees in international relations (development studies) and history. He was a scholarship holder at Sciences Po Lyon (political science) and is a graduate of the European Academy of Diplomacy.
Contact: lukasz.pieczonka@polsca.pan.pl; lukasz.pieczonka@uj.edu.pl
Mateusz Kirjak
Specialist for international projects at the Research Projects Department of the Medical University of Gdańsk. At the Projects Office he supports researchers in preparing and implementing grants, particularly within Horizon Europe and earlier EU instruments, as well as in ETC programmes and the EEA and Norway Grants. He is involved in activities related to the ACE²-EU university alliance, IDUB initiatives and the development of the university’s project ecosystem. He has gained experience as a project manager in the Joint Secretariat of the Interreg programme and as a project assistant at the European Heritage Preservation Foundation. He holds degrees in European studies - EU finance and in management and evaluation of EU projects from Gdańsk University of Technology.
Contact: m.kirjak@gumed.edu.pl
Katarzyna Dudek
Specialist for administrative project support at the Office for National Projects, Project Management Centre of the Silesian University of Technology in Gliwice. She supports the process of applying for national grants, provides proposal consultations and delivers training for researchers from various disciplines. Previously she worked at the Research Department of the Silesian University of Technology, where she dealt with research contracts and the financial management of European projects, including EU Framework Programme projects. Until 2023 she served as President of the Academic Music Ensemble Choir of the Silesian University of Technology. She holds a degree in finance from the University of Marketing Management and Foreign Languages in Katowice and completed postgraduate management studies at SGH Warsaw School of Economics.
Contact: katarzyna.dudek@polsl.pl
Katarzyna Markiewicz-Śliwa
Project manager with over 25 years’ experience in managing research and innovation projects at national and international level. Since 2000 she has been working with universities, research institutes, companies, SMEs, technology transfer institutions and local authorities across Europe, building an extensive R&I partnership network. She heads the International Projects Office at the Silesian University of Technology and, as a consultant for the Horizontal Contact Point, advises on EU framework programmes, with particular focus on project finance and funding strategies. She is a graduate of the Silesian University of Technology, École des Mines de Saint-Étienne and WSB University in Poznań
Contact: markiewicz.sliwa@gmail.com
- Joanna Bosiacka-Kniat
- Tomasz Charkiewicz
- Katarzyna Dudek
- Katarzyna Górak-Sosnowska
- Bogna Hryniszyn
- Izabela Juszkiewicz
- Joanna Kartasiewicz
- Mateusz Kirjak
- Natalia Kosikowska
- Alicja Kostrzak
- Monika Łaganowska
- Katarzyna Markiewicz-Śliwa
- Ewa Mendec
- Martyna Nowak
- Katarzyna Pasik-Król
- Łukasz Pieczonka
- Anna Piwowar
- Kamila Plis
- Tomasz Poprawka
- Daniel Puch
- Anna Reszka
- Marta Rucińska
- Maciej Skrzypczak
- Anna Smurzyńska
- Karolina Sobierajska
- Anna Stachowiak-Szrejbrowska
- Emilia Switat
- Agnieszka Tadrzak
- Lidia Tomaszewska
- Iwona Trochimczyk-Sawczuk
- Anna Wieczorek
- Ewa Witoń-Morgiewicz
- Agnieszka Wojciechowska De Cokere
- Ewa Zapora
- Żaneta Żegleń