OVPR Executive Committee
Christa Johnson, Interim Vice President for Research
Phone: (970) 491-7194
Email: Christa.Johnson@colostate.edu
Christa Johnson has served as a key member of the OVPR leadership team for more than eight years, advocating for and advising the Office of the Vice President for Research while overseeing operations. She leads the implementation of programs and the deployment of resources to strengthen CSU’s research administrative support and guide the university to meet the emerging research opportunities of the future. Johnson is responsible for the effective implementation of the VPR’s institutional agenda. She provides executive oversight of the OVPR and its divisions and serves as a liaison between the OVPR and stakeholders, helping to achieve significant gains in productivity and impact.
Johnson has extensive experience in research management and higher education, including more than 16 years with Washington University in St. Louis and Southern Illinois University Edwardsville. She is a leader in national research organizations including the Federal Demonstration Partnership, the Council on Government Relations and the National Council of University Research Administrators. She earned her Ph.D. in humanities and German studies from Stanford University and an MBA from Washington University.
David Paterson, Assistant Vice President for Research Translation and Commercialization
David Paterson focuses his work in the translation and commercialization of research. He works to expand industry sponsored research and relations, reviews and improves CSU industry engagement procedures and provides guidance to CSU research facilities and colleges in cultivating new industry-related partnerships.
Paterson has experience in academia, technology transfer and research and business and corporate development. Prior to CSU, he served as the vice president for out-partnering and alliance management and vice president of brand alliance management at Impax Laboratories where he established global industry partnerships. He also served as the director of U.S. academic liaison at GlaxoSmithKline, where he created research alliances and collaborations. Paterson holds a Ph.D. in plant biology from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign and a bachelor’s degree in botany from the University of Glasgow in Scotland.
Dr. Heather Pidcoke, Chief Medical Research Officer
Email: hpidcoke@colostate.edu
Dr. Heather Pidcoke leads the effort to enhance clinical and translational research support in recognition that CSU’s investigators are increasingly engaged in translating discoveries and applied sciences to human health solutions.
Dr. Pidcoke’s research interests include trauma critical care, novel transfusion products and biologics aimed at improving the resuscitation of massively bleeding patients. She was awarded a U.S. Army Commander’s Award for Civilian Service in recognition of her contributions in advancing medical research for military personnel. She also received the Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers (PECASE) from the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy which is the highest honor bestowed by the U.S. Government on science and engineering professionals in the early stages of their independent research careers. Dr. Pidcoke earned a Doctor of Medicine from Keck School of Medicine of the University of Southern California, a Doctor of Philosophy and a Master of Science at The University of Texas Health Science Center San Antonio.
Meghan Suter, Assistant Vice President for Research Administration and Operations
Email: meghan.suter@colostate.edu
Meghan Suter supports research administration, research development, research analytics and legislative affairs activities within the Office of the Vice President for Research.
Prior, Suter served as the founding director of CSU’s research acceleration office, working closely with faculty, researchers, students, staff and university senior administration to create a proactive research culture on campus and to promote excellence along the entire extramural funding life cycle. She has more than 15 years of experience in technology research, development, translation and commercialization. Prior to joining CSU, she worked as a senior research engineer at Ohio State University, where her efforts focused on agricultural waste conversion technologies and bioproduct cluster development. In the private sector, she founded and provided technical leadership to several startup companies focused on bioproduct commercialization, ranging from the creation of drug-eluting contact lenses to bio-asphalt made from swine manure. She holds a doctorate and a bachelor’s degrees in chemical engineering from Case Western Reserve University and Worcester Polytechnic Institute, respectively.
V. Chandrasekar (Chandra), Senior Faculty Advisor
V. Chandrasekar (Chandra) is a University Distinguished Professor serving as the senior advisor to the OVPR. He oversees various research activities, including faculty startup, retention and internal research investment and engagement with the Office of Sponsored Programs and plays a key role in compliance with the Controlled and Unclassified Information program (CUI). Chandra interfaces closely with Research IT and supports emerging areas of research and scholarly interests for CSU as the program manager for TUNE.
Chandrasekar’s research broadly spans the areas of earth- and space-based remote sensing. He is the former research director of the NSF, Engineering Research Center, Center for Collaborative Adaptive Sensing of the Atmosphere (CASA). His work was instrumental in developing the CSU-CHILL National Radar Facility as one of the most advanced meteorological radar systems available for research and education. In addition, Chandrasekar has participated in major research programs such as the NASA Global Precipitation Mission, the NASA TEMPEST-D program and the NSF Airborne Radar program. He is an elected fellow of the Institute of Electronic and Electrical Engineers, the American Meteorological Society, the American Geophysical Union and the National Academy of Inventors. He earned his Master of Science and Ph.D. in electrical engineering at CSU.
Mark Hubbard, Interim Assistant Vice President for Research Integrity and Compliance
Email: mark.hubbard@colostate.edu
Mark Hubbard oversees Colorado State University’s Conflict of Interest program and research compliance portfolios encompassing biosafety, export control, human research protections, animal care and use, secure and global research collaborations, responsible conduct of research, research integrity, and partnering with CSU Libraries on open science and open access initiatives.
Mark’s background incorporates a wide scope of higher education research services support. His previous roles include director of Research Services and assistant dean for the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, and senior manager of Research Advancement with Washington State University.
In the private sector, Mark was a founding member and principal scientist at DxDiscovery in Reno, Nevada, a university start-up company that develops rapids diagnostics for disease and has received funding through the National Institutes of Health and the Department of Defense. He holds a bachelor’s degree in biology and a doctorate in cellular and molecular biology from the University of Nevada-Reno.