Key Contacts
Caren J. Frost, PhD, MPH
Dr. Frost is the Associate Vice President for Research Integrity and Compliance. She is a section counselor for the Ethics in the American Public Health Association and is the NSF Responsible Conduct of Research Officer for the University of Utah. She has an MPH in Population and Family Health and a PhD in Applied, Cultural, and Medical Anthropology. She is a fellow with the Society for Applied Anthropology.
Dr. Frost has extensive research experience on qualitative and mixed methods research conducted in the U.S., Ghana, Japan, and Morocco. Dr. Frost is a Research Professor in the College of Social Work and an Adjunct Instructor in the Department of Family & Preventive Medicine.
Please contact Heather Sudbury (801-581-7170) for scheduling requests, including events and presentations.
Mrs. Sudbury is responsible for handling operations within the Research Integrity and Compliance office. She is a recipient of the University Staff Excellence Award. Mrs. Sudbury has worked at the University of Utah since 1999 in Pediatrics, Medical Ethics, and Research Integrity.
Jahn Barlow, MPA
Director
Resource for Genetic Epidemiology (RGE)
Research Ethics Consultation
Mr. Barlow is the RGE Director. He has worked for the University since 1995 and for Research Administration since 2007. RGE is responsible for the administrative oversight of the Utah Population Database (UPDB), a unique and nationally renowned data resource for genetic and epidemiologic research. Jahn came to Salt Lake City from Texas in 1991 and earned a BS in Political Science and a Master of Public Administration from the University of Utah.
Dr. Debbie Eckert is the Director of the Institutional Biosafety Committee (IBC) and the U’s Biosafety Officer. She obtained her Ph.D. in Biology from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and has over 20 years of research experience at the U, as research faculty in the Department of Biochemistry. Her research has included work with infectious HIV using BSL3 containment. Dr. Eckert has served on the IBC since 2014 and was vice-chair from 2018-2024. She maintains an adjunct appointment with the Department of Biochemistry.
Debbie Eckert, PhD
Director
Institutional Biosafety Committee
Biosafety Officer
debbie.eckert@ehs.utah.edu
801-585-9325
Trent Foxley
Office of Quality Compliance
Office of Foreign Influence
Mr. Trent Foxley has been associated with the research industry for over 15 years. His range of experience expands across laboratory, study coordination, regulatory affairs, training/education, management, quality assurance and compliance. Trent is the Director for the Office of Quality Compliance and the Office of Foreign Influence.
Ms. Gabler serves as the Director of Research Participant Advocacy. She has been employed by the University since 2006. She joined the Research Integrity and Compliance Office in 2008. Sadie’s role includes advocating for research participant’s rights and understanding as well as to provide community outreach and education on the importance of clinical research. She also provides education to faculty and staff on best practices for ensuring participant understanding in the research process. Sadie is a native of Kansas and received her BS degree from the University of Kansas before moving to Salt Lake City in 1995.
Dr. Johnson is the Director for the University of Utah Institutional Review Board and has been with the organization since 2006. She is an expert in human subjects research requirements and regulations. She has been a leader in establishing a single IRB process for the University of Utah, as well as the NCATS-funded Trial Innovation Network.
Dr. Johnson is an active member of the research community, not only reviewing and auditing proposals for the IRB, but also having conducted research and public health interventions in the United States and abroad. She has taught undergraduate- and graduate-level courses and is instrumental in continuing research education for the University of Utah, providing instruction on consent form models, establishing data and tissue repositories, investigator-initiated clinical trials, and managing reportable events.
Zach Mitchell is the University’s Research Integrity Officer (RIO). He obtained his undergraduate degree from the University of Utah in 2010 and has since supported University research compliance and integrity through roles in clinical study coordination, regulatory affairs, project management, clinical study monitoring, quality assurance, and research integrity.
Dr. Jesse Morris is the Associate Director of the Office of Research Education (REd). He is responsible for overseeing the development and delivery of grant writing and research compliance classes across campus. Dr. Morris graduated magna cum laude from the University of South Carolina and received his MS and PhD degrees at the University of Utah, with a focus on forest disturbance ecology. He worked as a postdoctoral researcher at the University of Helsinki, Kansas State University, and University of Idaho and was a visiting scholar at Australian National University.
Dr. Morris has extensive experience in climate change research in forest systems in the U.S., Finland, Russia, and Tasmania. He held a teaching faculty position at Weber State University before returning to the University of Utah 2018 to work as a grant specialist in the Office of the Vice President for Research. He also holds an appointment as a Research Associate Professor in the Geography Department.
Emily Ostrander is the Director of the Conflict of Interest (COI) Office. The Conflict of Interest Office supports the University community in identifying and managing financial conflicts of interest related to research and scholarly activities, business transactions, and intellectual property.
Emily has worked at the University in research for over a decade, serving in a wide-range of clinical research capacities at Huntsman Cancer Institute, and in the COI Office as an Associate Director, Task Force on Foreign Influence member, Operations Manager, and Senior Research Analyst. She has been nominated for an Administration District Staff Excellence Award. Her academic background includes subjects such as mediation, healthcare administration, office management, medical terminology, patient education, and law.
