Division of Research

Andrés Gil was appointed Vice President for Research in November 2009. He also serves as President of the FIU Research Foundation and is a Professor in the Robert Stempel College of Public Health and Social Work. Dr. Gil received a B.A. in Sociology/Anthropology from FIU, a MSW from Barry University, and a Ph.D. in Medical Sociology from the University of Miami. Prior to joining FIU, Dr. Gil was a faculty member and researcher at the University of Miami (Department of Sociology), the University of California, Berkeley (the Western Consortium of Public Health and the School of Public Health), and the University of Connecticut (the School of Family Studies). At FIU, he has been Associate Vice President for Research, Director of Research Development in the College of Health and Urban Affairs, and Associate Director of the Community-Based Intervention Research Group.

Dr. Gil’s research focuses on the etiology, epidemiology, and treatment for adolescent substance abuse and mental health. He has authored numerous articles that examine the role of culture, race, and ethnicity in adolescent substance use and mental health. His research has been published in the American Journal of Public Health, Archives of General Psychiatry, Epidemiology, Addiction, American Journal of Epidemiology, among others. Dr. Gil has conducted numerous longitudinal epidemiological studies in California and Florida, as well as clinical trials testing interventions to reduce substance abuse among adolescents. His research has been funded by several NIH Institutes and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. He also has served on numerous review and advisory panels for the National Institute for Mental Health, the National Institute on Drug Abuse, the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, and the California Tobacco Related Disease Program. In addition, he is on the editorial board of numerous scientific journals in his field of research. He is currently a member of the Advisory Council for the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA), a member of the APLU’s Council on Research Policy and Graduate Education, and a member of the Board of Trustees for the Southeastern Universities Research (SURA).

Joseph Barabino joined Florida International University in 2005 as Associate Vice President for Research and assumed responsibility for the leadership of university administrative and accounting research activities. Prior to FIU, he served multiple universities, research institutes and hospitals in a variety of research administration roles. Research administration is a multifaceted profession and the following are a few of the areas Mr. Barabino has been responsible for during his career: pre-award, post award, cost analysis (facility and administrative cost, fringe benefits, service centers), effort reporting, space functionalization, property management, and disclosure statements. He has had administrative responsibility for institutional animal care and use committee and the institutional bio-safety committee, and has served as a member of the Institutional review board. He is an active member of several professional organizations and has presented on a variety of research administration topics. In 1980 Mr. Barabino received a bachelors of arts degree in accounting from St. Martin’s University in Lacey, Washington.

Luis Salas is a 1968 graduate of North Carolina State University and received his Juris Doctor from Wake Forest University in 1971. Professor Salas joined Florida International University in 1975 and is a full professor in the School of International and Public Affairs. As Associate Vice President for Research, Dr. Salas will foster and promote sponsored research, as well as coordinate and plan research and technological development for centers reporting to the Office of the Senior Vice President for Research Development and Graduate Education. These centers consist of the International Hurricane Research Center (IHRC), which includes the Wall of Wind, and the Applied Research Center (ARC). Additionally, he will work directly with the Senior Vice President to develop the FIU Research Foundation. Dr. Salas will also work closely with the Vice President for Research in matters pertaining to research development and the Division of Research. In addition, he has served as the director of the Center for the Administration of Justice (CAJ) since 1984. CAJ is widely recognized as one of this country’s premier justice reform institutions working in developing countries.

Charlene is the Assistant Vice President for Research Accounting. She has worked in the financial area in both the public and private sector in various capacities for more than 22 years with 10 years experience at state universities. In her current role she focuses on the University’s Indirect Cost Proposal, Disclosure Statement, Recharge Centers and Effort Reporting. Prior to her current role, she served as Interim Controller for a year. Other positions she has held at FIU include Senior Accounting Manager, Sponsored Research and Financial Aid; Director of Sponsored Research and Federal Funds Accounting; Assistant Vice President Financial Planning; and Assistant Vice President, Deputy Controller. Prior to joining FIU she served as the Assistant Director for Cost Analysis at the University of Oklahoma and the Director of Grants and Contract Administration at Texas State University. Charlene is a certified public accountant, certified research administrator, certified fraud examiner and holds an MBA from the University of Houston. She is a presenter at the National Council of University Research Administrators, Southeast Conference of College Cost Accountants and the Society of Research Administrators. In addition she is the author of the Summary of University Audits, Settlements and Investigations located on the Cost Accounting Listserv at www.costaccounting.org.

Mirtha E. Alberto serves as the Director of the Budget & Cost Analysis section of the Division of Research (DoR). She became a Florida International University employee joining our team in 2005, but was no stranger to FIU. Mirtha graduated with a Bachelor’s Degree in Management Information Systems from the College of Business Administration in 1991. In her capacity she manages the budget for the internal operations of the Division of Research and all of its university wide research commitments and that of the FIU Research Foundation. Her area coordinates the resolutions of exceptions, processes month end and year end transactions, distributes F&A overhead returns to the colleges, monitors operations spending, research spending on allocated stimulus and carry forward funds, enters data for research proposals, awards, agreements, subcontracts, tracks expenses and reconciles C&G department ids, coordinates time & effort certifications, and serves as liaisons on university wide system implementation projects. She also coordinates professional employee development events to keep employees informed and continue the Division of Research’s efforts on team building.

Henry Artigues joined the Division of Research in 2009 to serve as the Director for Research Development. Henry comes to the DoR with over 13 years experience in the management of large scale research projects. He first came to FIU in 2002 to direct the operations of an NIH funded research grant focusing on substance using adolescents with behavioral problems. Since then he has served as the Administrative Director for the Community Based Intervention Research Group at FIU and most recently as the Director for Research Administration at the Stempel College of Public Health and Social Work. Henry has a Masters degree in Mental Health Counseling from the University of Miami and a Masters degree in Business Administration from FIU.

David Driesbach joined the Division of Research in 2008 to serve as Director of Research Decision Support. As Director, he oversees a team that provides internal consultative support to the Division of Research in matters related to technology and business process optimization. Mr. Driesbach brings to FIU private industry experience leveraging technology to enhance business operations within leading companies including Accenture, IBM, and FedEx Express. He has also presented on multiple occasions at the PeopleSoft Higher Education User Group (HEUG) conferences on topics ranging from PeopleSoft Grants Implementation strategies to techniques of reporting within a Financial System. Mr. Driesbach received a Bachelors in Finance and MIS from University of Delaware in 2000. He also received a Masters of International Business from FIU in 2008.

Christopher Grayson joined the Division of Research in 2004. He serves as the Director for the Office of Research Integrity and is responsible for overseeing the regulatory requirements for several research compliance areas. These areas include the Institutional Review Board (IRB), the Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee, the Institutional Biosafety Committee, Responsible Conduct of Research, Conflict of Interest, and Research Misconduct. Prior to working at FIU, he administered research compliance at the University of Central Florida. He earned his Bachelor of Science degree in Management Information Systems from the University of Central Florida. He later earned his Certification as an IRB Manager from the National Association of IRB Managers and his Certification as an IRB Professional from the Council for Certification of IRB Professionals. Mr. Grayson has been a recipient of the FIU Opportunity Award, a recognition awarded by the President of FIU. He is a member of several professional organizations including the Public Responsibility in Medicine and Research.

Mr. Gutierrez serves as the Director of the Pre-Award section of the Office of Sponsored Research Administration within the Division of Research. In his capacity as Director he has overall responsibility for the management and operation of the Pre-Award section of the Office of Sponsored Research Administration which is responsible for assistance with proposal development, proposal review, award negotiations and various other administrative functions related to contract and grants management. Mr. Gutierrez has been with the university since 1996 and the Division of Research since 2002. Mr. Gutierrez has a Bachelor of Arts in English (1999) from Florida International University and is currently pursuing a Master of Science degree in Higher Education Administration. Mr. Gutierrez was previously employed at the departmental level at the university’s Department of Physics and has experience from the legal profession as an insurance defense litigation specialist. Mr. Gutierrez is an active member of the National Council of University Research Administrators (NCURA) and is the university’s technical representative for the Federal Demonstration Partnership (FDP).

Peter Hernandez serves as the Director of Technology Transfer and Commercialization and provides overall leadership and direction for patents and licensing. He plans, develops, directs, and assesses the University’s Intellectual Property portfolio, including generation of licensing revenues. Mr. Hernández also coordinates cooperative ventures with businesses and industries to promote FIU technology, facilitate industry-university collaboration and technology transfer, and advance the commercial use of FIU intellectual property.

Peter earned a BSEE from the University of Miami in 1983, MBA from Florida International University in 1986, and JD from the University of Miami in 1993. He is a member of the Texas, Florida and District of Columbia bar associations, and is registered with the United States Patent and Trademark Office. Mr. Hernández has over 20 years of experience in industry, engineering and intellectual property management, including transactional matters, business negotiations, patents, trademarks, trade secrets, and copyrights. He has negotiated agreements, licensing and technology transfers with universities, as well as provided numerous training sessions and presentations on all aspects of intellectual property. Prior to joining FIU, Peter worked as Senior Counsel for companies such as Eastman Kodak, Goodrich Corporation, Texas Instruments, EndoSonics Corporation, and Motorola.

Maureen Pelham joined the Division of Research in 2010 as the Director of Clinical Trials. As an administrator, she has extensive experience in grantwriting, grants management, fundraising, and strategic planning and is a Certified Fund Raising Executive. Prior to joining FIU, Ms. Pelham spent 14 years in private industry, leading the health care division of a nationally known fundraising company. Her academic administrative experience was gained at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, where she worked for more than a decade as administrator for three research centers of excellence. Ms. Pelham earned advanced degrees at Vanderbilt University (Master of Science) and the University of Pittsburgh (Master of Healthcare Administration).

Aida Reus joined the Division of Research in 2005 and currently serves as the Director of the Post-Award section of the Office of Sponsored Research Administration within the Division of Research. As Director of Post-Award she has the overall responsibility for the management and operation of the Post-Award section which is responsible for the financial administration of contracts and grants awarded to the University. Ms. Reus has been with the University since 1981 working in various areas of the Controller’s Office including Accounts Payable, Contracts & Grants and Payroll. Ms. Reus holds a Bachelor in Business from FIU.

Dr. Webster provides leadership in the development of external relationships related to research with federal and state agencies as well as with industry partners. She also promotes the strategic research initiatives of the Division, the FIU Research Foundation (FIURF), other University research centers, and collaborates with the FIU Offices of Engagement, External Relations, and the FIU Foundation in these endeavors. She also assists the FIU Research Foundation in areas pertaining to strategic initiatives, such as business incubation efforts, as well as collaborating with industry partners. Dr. Webster earned a B.A. in Psychology from FIU, a Masters Degree and a Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology from the University of Virginia. She joined FIU in 2003 as Associate Director in the Division of Research, and later became Executive Director, setting up for the first time at FIU an Office of Intellectual Property Management, and managing the Office for 7 years. She has been actively involved in a variety of regional technology transfer and innovation initiatives. Dr. Webster has a background in research administration and compliance oversight for academic and healthcare institutions, and a background in behavioral health research.