Research Leadership
OUR MISSION: To advance high-quality research and scholarship at UD by promoting an environment that fosters creativity, collaboration, community and commitment to the highest ethical values.
FROM THE INTERIM VICE PRESIDENT
At the University of Delaware, research never stops. Curiosity, and the desire to make a positive impact on the world, continually drive us forward. Our faculty and students are making important discoveries as they work in well-equipped facilities and at field sites in Delaware and around the globe. During the past decade, external funding for UD research has steadily increased and now exceeds $200 million a year.
The Research Office serves as an advocate for UD faculty and scholars as they pursue research sponsored by governmental and non-governmental agencies and develop new innovations. Our staff help ensure compliance with all policies and procedures associated with the responsible conduct of research, foster the transfer of inventions and technologies into commercially marketable products, and assist in communicating UD research achievements to the public we serve.
A complementary mission of the office is to support the education of graduate students and undergraduate students through challenging academics and the conduct of peer-reviewed, publishable research.
Kelvin Lee
UD Interim Vice President for Research, Scholarship and Innovation
Kelvin Lee is responsible for advancing the University’s research enterprise. He is nationally known for his impact on U.S. innovation policy and his impact on diverse technical areas including proteomic methods, Alzheimer’s disease diagnosis and biopharmaceutical manufacturing.
Angela Anderson
Assistant Vice President for Federal Relations
Angela Anderson directs federal government relations at the University of Delaware, serving UD administration, faculty and staff as the University’s liaison to the federal government. She advocates for the University and its missions in education, research and outreach.
Tracey Bryant
Senior Director for Research Communications
Tracey Bryant directs research communications to enhance UD’s visibility as a research powerhouse. Based in the Office of Communications and Marketing, she is broadly responsible for advancing public awareness and understanding of UD’s research discoveries and achievements.
Jeffrey Friedland
Associate Vice President, Research Administration
Jeff Friedland oversees the Office of Sponsored Programs, which manages pre- and post-award sponsored research, develops financial-regulatory affairs programs, supports the operation of University-wide research institutes and internally funded research programs, and facilitates interdisciplinary research.
Julius Korley
Associate Vice President, Office of Economic Innovation and Partnerships
Julius Korley works to promote long-term, productive partnerships by facilitating access to space, capital, counsel and connections that empower entrepreneurs and innovators to accelerate their ideas to market, grow their businesses and form partnerships of their own.
Cordell Overby
Associate Vice President, Research and Regulatory Affairs
Cordell Overby oversees UD’s compliance with federal, state and internal policies and regulations. He is responsible for review, negotiation and establishment of research agreements and the administrative transfer of research materials.
K. Eric Wommack
Senior Associate Vice President for Research
Eric Wommack leads the research development team in advancing faculty collaborations and high-profile, cutting-edge research initiatives, including the establishment of successful research center grants and programs across multiple academic disciplines. His team also provides assistance in coordinating multidisciplinary proposals, educational workshops and much more.
A number of advisory boards and councils help guide and evaluate research programs at the University of Delaware. They serve as an advisory body to the Vice President for Research, Scholarship and Innovation on matters pertaining to the development of research and creative activities and the achievement of research goals at UD.
UD Research Advisory Boards
Center for Biomedical Engineering Research External Advisory Board
Comprised of scientists and clinicians from leading institutions, this board advises the center on research related to the National Institutes of Health-funded Center for Biomedical Research Excellence (COBRE) grant.
Ctr for Critical Zone Research External Advisory Board
These distinguished leaders from the academic, business, and policy communities are helping UD to develop a world-class, leading-edge research capability focusing on the “critical zone”–the fragile area from the treetops to the groundwater that sustains life on Earth.
Chemical Engineering Advisory Council
This council informs UD’s Department of Chemical Engineering, which is based in the College of Engineering.
Civil and Environmental Engineering External Advisory Council
Distinguished alumni and friends of the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering meet annually to advise the department and evaluate progress towards its goals.
College of Engineering Advisory Council
Distinguished alumni and friends of the College of Engineering meet annually to advise the college and evaluate progress towards its goals.
College of Health Sciences Visiting Committee
Leaders in health care within the state of Delaware provide insight into local corporate and government trends and initiatives and offer support to the College of Health Sciences’ administration regarding practice, policy, and economic trends.
College of Health Sciences Center for Research Development Advisory Council
Composed of researchers from each of the schools and departments within the College of Health Sciences, this council administers seed grants within the college to stimulate research and provides preliminary reviews of extramural funding effort.
Delaware Environmental Institute Advisory Board
The Delaware Environmental Institute External Advisory Board includes environmentally focused scientists, engineers and educators, from academia and the public and private sectors. This international group meets annually to provide strategic input and evaluate progress toward goals.
Delaware EPSCoR Steering Committee
Leaders from academia, government, and the private sector and provides advice to the principal investigator and the leadership team to guide the progress of the Research Infrastructure Improvement (RII) grant, assure alignment with institutional and state priorities, and identify opportunities to increase research capabilities within the state. The group meets annually.
Delaware INBRE – AAAS External Review Panel
As part of a continuing, comprehensive program evaluation strategy, the Delaware IDeA Network of Biomedical Research Excellence (INBRE) has teamed with the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) Research Competitiveness Program to provide a periodic review of the progress and the impact of the INBRE Network across Delaware. This panel of national experts conducts the bi-annual review and submits a written report to INBRE leadership.
Delaware INBRE External Advisory Board
The purpose of the Delaware IDeA Network of Biomedical Research Excellence (INBRE) is to deliver a statewide pipeline of capable and competitive medical research personnel who can compete for and win research grants from the National Institutes of Health. This board, comprised of senior representatives from academia, the biomedical industry, the medical community, and government labs, provides strategic comment and guidance on scientific, administrative, and other matters relevant to the INBRE program.
Delaware Interdisciplinary Ethics Program Planning Board
The mission of the Delaware Interdisciplinary Ethics Program is to promote high-quality teaching, research, and outreach in all areas of applied and professional ethics through projects and programs that assist educators, researchers, practitioners, and policy makers. Its members include representatives from higher education across Delaware.
Delaware Sea Grant Advisory Council
This statewide external advisory body to the Delaware Sea Grant College Program was created in 1974. Working within the national priorities identified by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s National Sea Grant College Program, the council helps further define priority coastal issues relevant to Delaware. Its members hail from marine-oriented business and industry, resource management and engineering firms, state government, public interest groups, the pre-college educational sector, and the media.
Lerner College of Business & Economics Advisory Board
Distinguished business and corporate leaders from across the region help advise UD’s Alfred Lerner College of Business and Economics.
Premedical Education Advisory Council
Faculty and administrators from UD and physicians and administrators from Jefferson Medical College and Christiana Care Health System provide guidance and advisement to UD’s pre-medical and pre-dental programs.
UD Research Foundation (UDRF) Research Committee
Distinguished scientists, physicians, and engineers from area industries govern the University of Delaware Research Foundation, which is a private corporation that was chartered in 1955 to support UD research. Funding awards of up to $25,000 per project are made annually to tenure-track faculty, early in their careers, in all fields of science.
John L. Weinberg Center for Corporate Governance Advisory Board
This advisory board helps guide the activities of the John L. Weinberg Center for Corporate Governance, which include conferences on topics of current interest, workshops for corporate directors and executives, research, publications, and other activities to further scholarship in corporate governance.
2021-2022 Research Council Membership
Kelvin Lee, Chair
- Nii Attoh-Okine, Civil & Environmental Engineering
- Steve Bai, NMR Facility
- Tracey Bryant, Communications & Marketing
- Jeff Buler, Entomology & Wildlife Ecology
- Jeff Caplan, Bioimaging Facility
- Iain Crawford, Undergraduate Research
- Trevor Dawes, Library
- Shannon Lennon, IRB
- Velia Fowler, Biological Sciences
- Jeff Friedland, Research Office
- Sean Hayes, Research Office
- Greg Hicks, Physical Therapy
- John Huffman, IT-Research Cyberinfrastructure
- Murray Johnston, Chemistry & Biochemistry
- Alison Karpyn, Human Development & Family Sciences
- Jim Kendra, Disaster Research Center
- John Koh, Delaware Biotechnology Institute
- Kelvin Lee, NIIMBL
- Dave Martin, Engineering
- Holly Michael, Geological Sciences
- Chrystalla Mouza, School of Education
- Krista Murray, Environmental Health & Safety
- Cordell Overby, Research Office
- Maria Palazuelos, Research Office
- Lauren Peterson, Art History
- Sharon Pitt, IT
- Charlie Riordan, Research Office
- Louis Rossi, Graduate College
- Dan Smith, Arts & Sciences
- Steven Stanhope, Kinesiology & Applied Physiology, BADER
- Fabrice Veron, College of Earth, Ocean & Environment
- Christy Visher, Sociology & Criminal Justice
- Dion Vlachos, University Delaware Energy Institute
- Eric Wommack, Agriculture & Natural Resources
- Cathy Wu, Computer & Information Sciences
Research Deans Council
Eric Wommack, (Chair)
- Wendy Bellion, College of Arts & Sciences, Humanities
- Suzanne Burton, College of Arts & Sciences, Arts
- Wei-jun Cai, College of Earth Ocean and Environment
- Trevor Dawes, University of Delaware Library, Museums, and Press
- Laura Desimone, School of Education
- Jeff Friedland, Research Office
- Gregory Hicks, Clinical and Translational Research
- Sean Hayes, Research Office
- John Huffman, IT-Research Cyberinfrastucture
- Annie Johnson, University of Delaware Library, Museums, and Press
- Sheryl Kline, Lerner College of Business
- Julius Korley, OEIP
- Mark Mirotznik, College of Engineering
- Freda Patterson, College of Health Sciences
- Lou Rossi, Graduate and Professional Education
- Tania Roth, College of Arts & Sciences, Natural Sciences
- Daniel Smith, College of Arts & Sciences, Social Sciences
- Amy Schwartz, Biden School of Public Policy
- Angelia Seyfferth, College of Agriculture & Natural Resources
- Joe Trainor, Biden School of Public Policy
