Research Board
The Research Board consists of faculty members representing the four colleges, one at-large, the library, and one academic professional staff member serving three-year terms (staggered). The Interim Associate Vice Chancellor for Research and Innovation chairs the Research Board.
Lucía Vazquez, Chair
Associate Vice Chancellor for Research and Innovation
Professor, Biology
Carissa Isenberg Pre-Award, Associate Director
Office of Research & Sponsored Programs
Staff (non-voting)
Martin Martsch (2025-2028) 3 yrs
Associate Professor, Counseling and Social Work Department
College of Liberal Arts & Social Sciences
Tih-Fen Ting (2022-2025) 3 yrs
Associate Professor
College of Health, Science and Technology
James Nickras (2025-2027) 2 yrs
Clinical Associate Professor
Library Administration
Sudeep Sharma (2024-2027) 3 yrs
Associate Professor, Management, Marketing and Operations
College of Business and Management
Liang Kong (2023-2026) 3 yrs
Professor, Mathematical Science and Philosophy
Frances Shen (2025-2028) 3 yrs
Professor, Psychology
College of Health, Science and Technology
Neetu Singh (2025-2028) 3 yrs
Associate Professor, Management Information Systems
College of Business and Management
Faculty interested to serve on this committee, please reach out to ora@uis.edu.
Institutional Review Board (IRB)
An Institutional Review Board (IRB) is a group of people who review research that involves human subjects. IRBs ensure that research studies meet ethical standards, follow institutional policies, and protect research participants. IRBs are federally mandated to review research before subjects can be enrolled in a study. At UIS, the IRB is chaired by the Associate Vice Chancellor for Research and Innovation.
John Barker
Associate Professor, Mathematical Science & Philosophy College of Health Science and Technology
Brandon Derman
Associate Professor,
College of Integrated Science, Sustainability & Public Health
Alan Freedman
Assistant Professor,
College of Health Science and Technology
Tih-Fen Ting
Associate Professor,
College of Integrated Science, Sustainability & Public Health
John Transue
Associate Professor,
School of Politics and Internal Affairs
Lucia Vazquez
Associate Vice Chancellor for Research and Innovation
Gary Reinbold
Associate Professor, School of Public Management and Policy
Neeraj Rajasekar
Assistant Professor, Sociology & Anthropology
College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences
STARS Planning Committee
The STARS Planning Committee is responsible for planning and organization of the annual STARS Conference we have on campus annually. Student researchers on campus present the findings of their research works they have worked on throughout the year during this event and also compete for several awards. The committee is chaired by the Associate Vice-Chancellor for Research and Innovation.
Sahar Farshadkhah
Assistant Professor, Management Information System. College of Business and Management
Eric Hadley-Ives
Associate Professor, Counseling & Social Work, College of Health, Science & Technology
Jessica Flynn
Director of Office of Engaged Learning
Isabel Skinner
Assistant Professor, School of Politics and International Affairs
Rick Stokes
Clinical Assistant Professor, School of Integrated Sciences, Sustainability and Public Health
Anne-Marie Hanson
Associate Dean, College of Health, Science and Technology
Te-Wei Wang
Professor, Management Information Systems. College of Business and Management
Lucia Vazquez
Associate Vice Chancellor for Research and Innovation
Carissa Isenberg
Pre-award Associate Director
Office of Research & Sponsored Programs
Yuan Wen
Assistant Professor of Marketing, College of Business and Administration
Brian (Cheng-Chia) Chen
Associate Professor, School of Integrated Science, Sustainability and Public Health
Student Research Steering Committee
The Student Research Steering Committee is responsible for reviewing the applications submitted by UIS Students for a funding request for research works they plan on doing or are already involved in. The grants applications are considered on a first come basis. The committee is chaired by Associate Vice Chancellor for Research and Innovation.
Hua Chen
Professor, School of Integrated Sciences, Sustainability, and Public Health
Matthew Geras
Associate Professor of Political Science, College of Public Affairs and Education
Sally LaJoie
Clinical Assistant Prof./Instructional Services Librarian. Brookens Library
Lucia Vazquez
Associate Vice Chancellor for Research and Innovation
Yuan Wen
Professor of Marketing, College of Business and Administration
Livia Woods
Associate Professor, English and Modern Languages. College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences
Animal Care Committee
The Animal Care Committee oversees all research protocols involving animals.
John Barker
Committee Chair
Associate Professor, Mathematical Science & Philosophy College of Health Science and Technology
Joel Horwedel
Affiliated externally to UIS
Amy McEuen
Professor, School of Integrated Sciences, Sustainability and Public Health
Sheryl Reminger
Professor of Psychology
College of Health Sciences and Technology
Sean Synder
Affiliated externally to UIS
Tom Rothfus
Clinical Assistant Professor, School of Integrated Sciences, Sustainability and Public Health; Director of Therkildsen Field Station at Emiquon
Lucia Vazquez
Associate Vice Chancellor for Research and Innovation