Research and Project Staff

Central Administration Research Office (CARO)

Melanie Steiner-Sherwood

Director, Research and Scholarship

Administration
Melanie develops the department’s research infrastructure and directs central pre- and post-award operations. She works closely with the Vice Chair for Research and the Research and Innovation Committee to set strategic goals and success metrics for research activities. She joined the University of Utah in 2016 and has worked in project management and proposal development, most recently in the VPR’s research development office, and has significant experience with NIH and NSF. Melanie holds a PhD in German Studies from Cornell University and a certificate in Editing from the University of Chicago Graham School.

m.steiner.sherwood@utah.edu

Tanis Garcia

Post-Award Manager

Administration
Tanis has been with the U since 2013 and has been working in research accounting since 2015; she started in the Engineering Department prior to coming to DFPM. She has been with DFPM since November 2020. Her responsibilities are ensuring post-award processes and procedures are being done correctly within DFPM, she is responsible for post-award support to PI's and divisions, working with pre-award as assigned, and other financial responsibility.

tanis.garcia@utah.edu

Danielle Plank

Manager, Grants and Contracts

Administration
I am originally from Roanoke Virginia and came here about 12 years to finish school. I ended up getting a bachelor’s in Behavior Science-Anthropology from UVU. I came to the U two and a half years ago and started working with the SVPHS Pre-award team as a grants and contracts officer. Before that, I worked for Vail Resorts and Park City Mountain Resort as a reservations assistant manager. I love spending time with my husband, camping, biking, and exploring new areas.

danielle.plank@hsc.utah.edu

Anne Randall

Grant/Contract Officer

Administration
Anne joined the U in 1995 working in Oncology on the PLCO study. She was then part of the SPRINT high blood pressure study in Nephrology. She joined DFPM, Division of Public Health, in 2016 as an Administrative Assistant. In 2002 she joined Central Admin as a post award officer. She is responsible for ensuring post-award processes and procedures are being done correctly within Family Medicine (FM), Physician Assistance Program (PA), and Occupational and Environmental Health (OEH). Anne enjoys traveling with family, cooking for the family, and spending time with her family, especially the grandkids.

anne.randall@utah.edu

Maude Romney

Research Manager

Administration
Maude's role in the Department of Family & Preventive Medicine (DFPM) focuses on managing various programs including REACH-U2, HSF, and DFPM Research Mentor Training. They also oversee pre-award grants and contracts for DFPM. In their free time Maude enjoys reading, running, and spending time with loved ones.

madeline.romney@utah.edu

Eliza Taylor

Research Manager

Division of Family Medicine
Division of Physician Assistant Studies
Eliza is dedicated to expanding the research footprint in the Family Medicine and Physician Assistant divisions. She supports faculty with IRB, REDCap, Qualtrics, manuscript writing, publications, and problem-solving specific to the scholarly needs of clinicians. Eliza supervises FM and PA research staff and is available for one-on-one research question consultations. Eliza received her MPH degree from the University of Utah and has a background in women and refugee health.

eliza.taylor@utah.edu

Researchers & Project Staff

Tatiana Allen-Webb, BS, CCRP

Program Manager

Division of Public Health
Tatiana Allen-Webb, BS, CCRP, is the Programs Manager for the Utah Area Health Education Centers (AHEC) program. She coordinates the design, development, and delivery of statewide initiatives, including program assessment and improvement, and oversees the AHEC Scholars. Additionally, Tatiana manages the Community Health Worker Team embedded into the School of Medicine curriculum. Tatiana has 23 years of experience at the University of Utah.

tatiana.allen@hsc.utah.edu

Rachel Brown

Project Coordinator

Division of Occupational & Environmental Health
Rachel is the Project Coordinator for the Rocky Mountain Center for Occupational and Environmental Health. Her responsibilities include coordinating training activities, monitors expenditures, assisting in the preparation of grant proposal, research materials, and outreach projects and publications, coordinate seminars, workshops, and other project meetings. Rachel has a M.S. in Environmental Policy and Natural Resource Management with 10+ years of experience in the environmental field.

racheltbrown@hsc.utah.edu

Andrew Curtin

Biostatistician I

Division of Public Health
Andrew Curtin, MSTAT Candidate, is Biostatistician I and key member for the DFPM Biostatistical Support Core and Family Medicine Research Core. He is graduating from the University of Utah's MSTAT program Summer 2022, and currently has a Bachelor of Science in Biology and a Bachelor of Science in Chemistry from the University of Utah. He has previously worked for Utah Education Network and Myriad Genetics. Andrew enjoys spending time with his son kayaking and exploring Timpanogos canyon, and caring for his pet dog and chickens.

andrew.curtin@utah.edu

Andrew Langi

Project Manager

Administration
Andrew provides administrative support for the National Research Mentoring Network (NRMN) project at the University of Utah. His main responsibilities are leading NRMN project operations for team members, overseeing administration of grant activities to ensure achievement of quarterly goals, complying with institutional and funder policies, proper contract execution and preparation of annual progress reports. He also assists with managing the NRMN grant budgets, three subcontracts, and contracts.

andrew.langi@hci.utah.edu

Robert Owens

Evaluation Specialist

Administration
Rob is the evaluation specialist for the HRSA grant-funded project Maternal Health Capacity Building for the Medically Underserved in Rural and Urban Utah. He is responsible for developing and implementing the evaluation plan, including creating instruments and measures, collecting data, performing analyses, and publishing findings. He is also providing support for research projects with the Utah Department of Health and Human Services involving the Hypertension Disparities Dashboard. Rob has over 10 years’ experience in program evaluation, a PhD in Educational Psychology, and a Master’s degree in Human Development.

u6026079@utah.edu

Chin-Yin Shih

Program Manager

Administration
Chin-Yin is responsible for planning, organizing, directing all aspects pertaining to administrative functions for two research projects in the Department of Family and Preventive Medicine: Utah Advanced Course on Mentoring, Leadership, and Research on Cancer-Related Health Disparities and HRSA-funded Maternal Health Capacity Building for the Medically Underserved in Rural and Urban Utah. Prior to joining the University of Utah, Chin-Yin worked at the Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center, Center for Health Equity, to help improve access for individuals to receive care as well as working to reduce disparities in cancer screenings. Chin-Yin has years of experience working in the social services field and has a Bachelor's degree in Social Work from the National Taipei University and a Master's degree in Social Work from The Ohio State University.

chinyin.shih@utah.edu

Quinn Tanner, MSPH

Program Manager

Administration
Quinn Tanner, MSPH is the Program Manager for the Utah Stimulating Access to Research in Residency (Utah StARR) program and for the Utah NASDC course on Cancer-Related Health Disparities Research, Mentoring, and Leadership. She earned her masters degree in Public Health and her undergraduate degree in Health and Society with a minor in Philosophy here at the University of Utah. In her free time, Quinn enjoys playing card games, listening to podcasts, exploring the great outdoors, and holding one-way conversations with her dogs Milly and Roux.

quinn.tanner@hsc.utah.edu