Directors of Research & Innovation
Our five Faculty Directors of Research & Innovation (FDRIs) are responsible for developing and leading research, innovation and knowledge exchange strategies for their respective research areas. Working together, and with the Pro-Vice Chancellor for Research & Innovation, Professor Richard Jones, they play an important role in promoting inter-departmental and inter-disciplinary research activity.
Faculty Directors of Research & Innovation
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Arts and Humanities: Professor Andrew LinnAndrew became a lecturer in the Department of English Language and Linguistics in 1997, being made senior lecturer in 2002 and a Chair in the History of Linguistics in 2003. Andrew's research is currently devoted to trying to make sense of the extraordinary recent events in Norwegian language politics (particularly the response to 'the threat of English'), and to issues of language reform more generally. He is also a founding member of the AHRC peer review college and also of the Worldwide Universities Network History of Linguistics Group. As FDRI for Arts and Humanities, Andrew is working closely with the Humanities Research Institute and other research centres and clusters within the Faculty and is closely supported by the R&IS team.
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Engineering: Professor Aleksandar PavicAlex is a graduate of the Faculty of Civil Engineering, University of Belgrade in the former Yugoslavia where he graduated in 1988 and worked before coming to the UK in 1992. He was appointed a Lecturer in Structural Engineering at Sheffield in January 1996 after spending just over two years as a doctoral student in the department. This was followed by his promotions to a Senior Lecturer in October 2002 and a Personal Chair in Vibration Engineering in March 2004. Two months later, in May 2004, he became a research professor after being awarded a prestigious 5-year Advanced Research Fellowship funded by the EPSRC to work on a novel Stochastic approach to human-structure dynamic interaction. Alex heads the Vibration Engineering Section and his research portfolio is focused on vibration performance of civil engineering structures. His particular expertise is in vibration serviceability of slender civil engineering structures, such as long-span floors, footbridges and grandstands, which are occupied and dynamically excited by humans. Alex became FRDI for Engineering in 2011.
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Medicine, Dentistry and Health: Professor Paul HellewellAfter completing an undergraduate at King’s and a PhD at Cambridge, Paul worked for a variety of medical research institutes and companies. Paul took up his current post as Chair of Vascular Biology in 1998 and has since held a number of senior roles. His current research centres on mechanisms and regulation of leukocyte endothelial transmigration and the biology of selectins and selectin ligands. As FDRI, Paul provides leadership in research and supports the development of management information, key performance indicators and benchmarks to evaluate and increase research performance. A key part of Paul's role is to promote the Faculty externally, making the most of external networks, especially with regard to NHS R&D colleagues and NHS funding opportunities.
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Science: Professor Rob FreckletonRob joined the University of Sheffield in 2006 as Professor of Population Biology, alongside this he is a Royal Society Research Fellow. His current research focuses on modelling population and community dynamics. He is particularly interested in large scale population dynamics, although have a range of interests, including:
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Social Sciences: Professor Craig WatkinsCraig graduated with a BSc (Economics) from the University of Strathclyde in 1989 and, after a (very) brief period in industry, worked as a researcher in the Department of Economics at the University of Strathclyde, the Department of Land Economics at the University of Paisley and the School of Planning and Housing at Heriot-Watt University. For much of this period he also worked part time on a PhD (Land Economics) at the University of Paisley. In 1995, he was appointed to a lectureship in the Department of Land Economy at the University of Aberdeen and in 1999 was promoted to Senior Lecturer. His current and recent research focuses on the structure and operation of property markets, particularly local housing systems, and the impact of public policy on real estate market performance. This research addresses theoretical and empirical issues and is generally, although not exclusively, located within a quantitative economic framework.
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