Nadine Connor named to interim post for research policy and compliance

Nadine Connor, a professor in the University of Wisconsin–Madison Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders and Department of Surgery, has been appointed the university’s interim associate vice chancellor for research policy and compliance. She begins her new role Sept. 29.

“I’m looking forward to working with Nadine, who brings a wealth of experience in areas of human subjects and animal care research, and regulatory compliance,” says Marsha Mailick, vice chancellor for research and graduate education. “She knows the campus research community and has been a leader in patient-centered research and human clinical sciences.”

Connor will oversee many facets of research policy on campus, including human subjects and animal research. Other responsibilities related to research policy will continue to be carried out by Brian Fox, associate vice chancellor for research policy and integrity and chair of the Department of of Biochemistry.

Connor is taking over for Dan Uhlrich, who is returning to his faculty position in the Department of Neuroscience.

“I’m very grateful to Dan for his leadership and service to our researchers,” says Mailick. “Dan maintained UW–Madison’s high standards in setting and executing institutional priorities to enhance research excellence.”

Connor has been a member of the Health Sciences Institutional Review Board, and chaired the School of Medicine and Public Health’s Animal Care and Use Committee. She conducts both clinical and basic science research.

“Compliance is a fact of scientific life. We must be compliant to be successful in our research programs,” says Connor. “As someone who works on both the compliance side and the PI side, I am able to understand the perspectives of faculty and staff who are simultaneously trying to maintain funding, run a laboratory, do science, and adhere to the highest standards of compliance.”

Connor has several research projects underway on communication disorders and swallowing impairments. She focuses on the effects of aging and neurological diseases on these critical functions, and partners on a clinical project in the area of thyroid cancer. She thinks the best part of her new position is even broader exposure to all of the great research being conducted at UW–Madison.

“I have an infinite curiosity about the wonderful things that are happening here, and I want to be a part of the leadership team that helps investigators be successful in merging their science with their compliance activities, and making it less burdensome,” Connor says. “I’m honored to be a part of the team that is developing policies to make that possible.”