The University of Nebraska–Lincoln has announced two finalists for the vice chancellor for research and innovation position. Selected through an internal search, the candidates will participate in interviews with faculty, staff, stakeholders, students and administrators April 21-22.
Announced by Interim Chancellor Katherine S. Ankerson on April 15, finalists are Jennifer Mize Nelson, interim vice chancellor for research and innovation, and research associate professor in the Department of Psychology; and Mark R. Riley, associate dean for research and a professor in the College of Engineering.
The vice chancellor reports to the chancellor and serves as the university’s chief research and economic development officer, providing intellectual, strategic and visionary leadership for Nebraska’s research enterprise. The position oversees the Office of Research and Innovation, including sponsored programs, research development, compliance, industry relations and technology commercialization, as well as Nebraska Innovation Campus, NUtech Ventures, the University of Nebraska State Museum and the University of Nebraska Press.
The vice chancellor also provides leadership for interdisciplinary research centers across campus and is responsible for advancing sponsored research growth, strengthening national competitiveness, aligning research with the university’s strategic plan, and expanding public- and private-sector partnerships.
Click a finalist's name to review their complete curriculum vitae.
Jennifer Mize Nelson
Nelson is interim vice chancellor for research and innovation, a role she has held since November 2024. She previously served as associate vice chancellor and research integrity officer in the Office of Research and Innovation. In that role, she served as a liaison to university research centers and major core facilities, led development of a campuswide research data strategy and oversaw compliance programs including human subject protection, animal care and conflict of interest.
Before joining the Office of Research and Innovation in 2019, Nelson was director of administration for the UNL Center for Brain, Biology and Behavior. A member of the Nebraska faculty since 2011, Nelson is research faculty in the Department of Psychology and has served as a co-investigator in a National Institutes of Health-funded lab studying children’s cognitive development and health outcomes.
Her research focuses on executive control development from early childhood through adolescence and its implications for mental and physical health. She earned a bachelor’s degree in psychology from the University of California, Los Angeles and a doctorate in clinical child psychology from the University of Kansas. She completed a predoctoral clinical internship at Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital Stanford and the Children’s Health Council.
Mark R. Riley
Riley is associate dean for research in the College of Engineering at the University of Nebraska–Lincoln and a professor of biological systems engineering. He previously served as department head in biological systems engineering at Nebraska. Riley also held faculty and leadership roles at the University of Arizona, including department head of agricultural and biosystems engineering.
His research focuses on bioprocess engineering, biosensors and environmental monitoring applications, including pathogen detection and air quality analysis. He has held national leadership roles in professional organizations, including president of the Institute of Biological Engineering and founding editor-in-chief of the Journal of Biological Engineering.
Riley is a fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science and the American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering. He holds a doctoral and master’s degree from Rutgers University and a bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering from the University of Michigan.
