This year’s cohort of the Research Leadership Program (RLP) finished in May. Hosted by the Office of Research Advancement and Partnerships (ORAP), the RLP is a cohort-based program for mid-career faculty (associate and above) to learn the communication, interpersonal, organization, and project-planning skills required to lead large multidisciplinary grant projects.
This year’s cohort consists of 22 faculty system-wide. Participants completed an 8-week research leadership course last fall and two one-on-one coaching sessions with AtKisson Training Group, an external facilitator. This spring, participants attended monthly sessions hosted by ORAP focused on applying leadership skills in a WSU-specific institutional context.
To support participants after the program, RLP faculty members were paired with a peer mentor experienced working with large research teams. Faculty will meet with their mentors approximately monthly over the next year to receive guidance and support towards their research leadership goals. Below is a list of faculty members and their mentors for the 2022-2023 cohort:
RLP Participant | RLP Participant Unit | Mentor | Mentor Unit |
Ani Jayakaran | Biological Systems Engineering | Chad Kruger | Center for Sustaining Agriculture and Natural Resources |
David Makin | Criminal Justice and Criminology | Dedra Buchwald | Institute for Research and Education to Advance Community Health |
Sergey Lapin | Mathematics and Statistics | Mani Venkatasubrama | Electrical Engineering and Computer Science |
Alexander Dimitrov | Mathematics and Statistics | Lonnie Nelson | Nursing |
Brian French | Kinesiology and Educational Psychology | Jon Yoder | State of Washington Water Research Center |
Julia Day | School of Design & Construction | Jonathan Male | Office for National Laboratory Partnerships |
Jean-Sabin McEwen | Chemical Engineering and Bioengineering | Haluk Beyenal | Chemical Engineering and Bioengineering |
Heiko Jansen | Integrative Physiology and Neuroscience | Tom Kawula | Paul G. Allen School for Global Health |
Kate Huyvaert | Veterinary Microbiology and Pathology | Andrew Storfer | School of Biological Sciences |
Andrei Smertenko | Institute of Biological Chemistry | Ananth Kalyanaraman | Electrical Engineering and Computer Science |
Cynthia Gleason | Plant Pathology | Lindsey duToit | Plant Pathology |
Kiwamu Tanaka | Plant Pathology | Scot Hulbert | Plant Pathology |
Achour Amiri | Plant Pathology | Lisa Wasko DeVetter | Horticulture |
Bin Yang | Biological Systems Engineering | Juming Tang | Biological Systems Engineering |
Alexander Fremier | School of the Environment | Jennifer Adam | Civil and Environmental Engineering |
Jinwen Zhang | Mechanical and Materials Engineering | Manuel Garcia-Perez | Biological Systems Engineering |
Venera Arnaoudova | Electrical Engineering and Computer Science | Anjan Bose | Electrical Engineering and Computer Science |
Assefaw Gebremedhin | Electrical Engineering and Computer Science | Jan Boll | Civil and Environmental Engineering |
Eric Shelden | School of Molecular Biosciences | Alla Kostyukova | Chemical Engineering and Bioengineering |
Since the program’s inception two years ago, 30 faculty from 20 departments, seven colleges, and nine WSU locations have participated. Please contact Sofia D’Ambrosio, proposal consultant at ORAP, by email at sofia.dambrosio@wsu.edu for more information.