The Institutional Review Board members serve on a volunteer basis and are profiled below.
The minimum composition of the board is established by institutional policy. The chair is a faculty member elected from within the board. The policy regarding board membership is described in the IRB Guidebook.
Chair
Margaret Reardon, PhD (Florida International University), associate professor, Department of Psychology
Reardon received her BA in psychology from State University of New York College at Geneseo, and her master's and doctoral degrees in psychology from Florida International University with a focus on legal psychology. She teaches courses in statistics and research methods at both the undergraduate and graduate levels, along with undergraduate courses in her area of specialty such as Forensic Psychology and Actual Innocence. Reardon's current scholarly interests include juror evaluations of forensic evidence, perceptions of police use of force, and beliefs in justice. Reardon is a member of the American Psychology-Law Society and the Association for Psychological Science and regularly consults on legal cases involving eyewitness evidence.
Members
Kristy Chunta, PhD, RN, ACNS (West Virginia University), associate professor, Department of Nursing
Chunta is a licensed registered nurse (Pennsylvania) and holds certification as a clinical specialist in medical-surgical nursing. She earned her diploma in nursing from the Conemaugh School of Nursing; bachelor of science in nursing and school nurse certification from the University of Pittsburgh, Johnstown; and master of science in nursing with role preparation in education from Indiana University of Pennsylvania. Chunta teaches undergraduate, graduate, and doctoral courses. She is vice president of the board of trustees for the Lucas Foundation, a nonprofit organization that provides support to families who have lost a newborn. Her research interests include recovery of open-heart surgery patients, transition to clinical practice, and simulation. Chunta is a reviewer for clinical, research, and nursing education-based journals, including the American Journal of Nursing, Heart & Lung, and Nurse Education Today. She can be reached by email at kchunta@iup.edu or by phone at 724-357-2408.
Dana Driscoll, PhD (Purdue University), professor, Department of Language, Literature, and Writing
Driscoll completed her PhD in rhetoric and composition at Purdue University, where she specialized in writing transfer, research methods, and writing center/writing program administration. Driscoll has been published widely and offered international keynote speeches on learning theory, writing transfer, writing expertise, writing centers, and supporting advanced writers in disciplinary fields. At IUP, she teaches writing for publication, research methods (quantitative, qualitative, and research design), and composition pedagogy in the Composition and Applied Linguistics doctoral program. She served as director of the Jones White Writing Center for five years before founding the Center for Scholarly Communication in fall 2024. She has served on multiple editorial boards and also served as a co-editor on Writing Spaces for three years (publishing three volumes). Driscoll can be reached at dana.driscoll@iup.edu.
Alex Heckert, PhD (University of Iowa), professor, Department of School Psychology, Special Education, and Sociology
Heckert received his PhD in sociology from the University of Iowa. He teaches classes and publishes research in the areas of sociology of family, deviance, delinquency, theory, and research methods. His research has been wide ranging and includes the study of family violence, the effects of children's substance use disorders on parents, development of an instrument to measure disability orientations, and the timing of various life events, as well as the introduction of a new typology of deviance to the study of sociology of deviance. He has served as a reviewer for a number of social science journals.
Bethany Jackson, CRA, Director of Compliance, Office of Research and Innovation
Jackson has a bachelor’s degree in communication studies from Grove City College and has earned the designation of certified research administrator (RACC). Jackson is currently the IRB’s expedited reviewer. She manages research policies and ethical compliance for the university, manages the IRB Manager system, and oversees the operations of the IRB Office. Jackson can be reached at bjackson@iup.edu.
Steve Kleinman, PhD (Ohio State University), Assistant Director of the Department of Communications Media
Kleinman is an associate professor in the Department of Communications Media and the coordinator for the PhD program in Communications Media. He has been teaching at the university since earning his PhD in 2013. His teaching spans both undergraduate and graduate courses in subjects such as statistics, research methods, political communication, and media studies and production. Kleinman's research focuses on the dynamics of political discussion in everyday life, with a particular interest in how political knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors evolve through various communication processes over time. He has published widely in major academic journals, including Journal of Communication, Political Behavior, and Communication Research. Additionally, Kleinman serves as the faculty advisor for the university cable television station IUP-TV.
Luz Marin, ScD (University of Massachusetts, Lowell), assistant professor, Department of Safety Sciences and Environmental Engineering
Marin holds a BS in chemical engineering from National University of Colombia, master’s degrees in occupational health management (Del Rosario University, Colombia), project design management (Colombian School of Engineering), and work environment (UML). She holds a doctoral degree in occupational ergonomics and safety from UML with a minor in occupational epidemiology. She teaches courses in safety management, occupational toxicology, applied ergonomics, and qualitative research methods at both the undergraduate and graduate levels. Marin's research areas of interest include socio-economic determinants of workplace safety and health among Hispanic workers, work-related musculoskeletal disorders, sexual harassment as an occupational hazard, and new technologies for safety training. Marin is a member of the American Society of Safety Professionals and a board member of Hispanic Safety Professionals.
Richard Neff, MD (Drexel University College of Medicine), Chief Medical Officer, Indiana Regional Medical Center.
Neff trained in family medicine at the University of Pennsylvania's Family Medicine and Community Health Residency in Philadelphia. Before medical school at MCP Hahnemann School of Medicine/Drexel University, he received a bachelor of arts degree in music with college honors from Earlham College, completed the course work for a master’s in music history and theory at Penn State University, and is currently working on an MBA at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst. Most recently, he hails from Flagstaff, Arizona, where he worked for Northern Arizona Healthcare, working in a number of positions, including as chief medical officer for Flagstaff Medical Center, serving as NAH IRB member, then its chair, as well as serving as a community member on Northern Arizona University's IRB. As part to his role supervising research, he worked to facilitate research collaborations between the university and the health system. Richard can be reached via email at rneff@indianarmc.org or by phone at 724-357-7178.
Matthew L. Nice, PhD (Duquesne University), assistant professor, Department of Counseling and Human Development
Nice has been at IUP in the Department of Counseling and Human Development since August 2020 and holds a PhD from Duquesne University in counselor education and supervision. During his doctoral studies at Duquesne University, he served as the assistant to the IRB chair. His research interests include emerging adulthood development, assessment measures, wellness, and college readiness. His teaching spans the master's and doctoral programs in his department, where he commonly teaches courses centered around research methods and assessment. He can be reached via email at mnice@iup.edu.
Kelli R. Paquette, EdD (Wilmington University), professor and chairperson, Department of Professional Studies in Education
Paquette is an IUP alumna, earning her undergraduate degree in elementary education. She is a former Delaware elementary school teacher certified in grades K-6 (Pennsylvania) and grades 1-8 (Delaware), and she is also certified as an elementary school principal, reading specialist, and program specialist ESL. Paquette teaches undergraduate, graduate, and doctoral courses in her department. Her research interests include literacy development and research-based best instructional practices. She is a reviewer for Early Childhood Education Journal and presents at various international, national, and regional conferences. She can be reached by email at kpaquett@iup.edu. or by phone at 724-357-2400.
Jennifer Roberts, PhD (University of Nebraska), professor, Department of Criminology and Criminal Justice
Roberts has been a long-standing member of the IRB, including serving as chair from 2014 to 2023. Within the Department of Criminology and Criminal Justice, she teaches a variety of courses across the undergraduate and graduate levels. Her research interests include the study of violence and the use of the survey methodology with criminological samples. She may be contacted by email at jroberts@iup.edu or by phone at 724-357-5610.
Joseph Rosendale, PhD (Indiana University of Pennsylvania), professor, Department of Management
Rosendale holds the position of professor of management in the Eberly College of Business, primarily teaching courses in business communication, contemporary business issues, and organizational behavior at both the undergraduate and graduate level. He earned a PhD in communications media and instructional technology at Indiana University of Pennsylvania as well as an MEd in business and workforce development. Rosendale also holds an MBA from Clarion University. His current research focuses on management staffing and training issues, as well as trends in communication modalities, particularly those impacting higher education. Rosendale can best be reached via email at jarose@iup.edu.
Mark Sloniger, PhD (University of Georgia), professor, Department of Allied and Public Health
Mark Sloniger holds the position of professor of exercise science. He completed his doctorate at the University of Georgia and a post-doctoral NIH Research Training Fellowship at Duke University Medical Center. Sloniger has been recognized as an American College of Sports Medicine Fellow as a result of his research accomplishments and service to the college. He is a past president of the Mid-Atlantic Regional Chapter of ACSM and maintains memberships within ACSM and the National Strength and Conditioning Association. He is certified by the NSCA as a strength and conditioning specialist. Sloniger serves the Department of Allied and Public Health through his work on various committees, which includes chairperson of the departmental Institutional Review Board for the Protection of Human Subjects. Additionally, he is director of the Human Performance Laboratory housed within the department. Sloniger can be reached by email at sloniger@iup.edu or by phone at 724-357-5508.