SRL Team
Executive Director
Since coming to Kent State University (KSU) in February 2012, Dr. Gregory Gibson is the full-time Director of the Kent State University Survey Research Laboratory. His responsibilities include responding to RFPs, budgeting projects, all phases of survey project work (including questionnaire development, cognitive testing, and protocol development), conducting interviewer training (including development of training manuals and study-specific trainings), programming surveys in Sensus/WinCATI, filing and updating IRB proposals, cleaning and annotating data files, and supervision of a 24-station CATI lab (workforce of up to 65 callers). Additional directorship duties fulfilled by Dr. Gibson include recruitment, hiring, and retention of personnel, interfacing with Research and Economic Development, budgeting, internal and external billing, and mentoring of graduate students in survey research and college teaching. Dr. Gibson was presented with the Sociology Department’s Graduate Student Mentoring Award in 2015. Dr. Gibson has procured over $3 million in external funding to the SRL and conducted more than 145 online surveys. He currently serves as a Discipline Specific Reviewer for the KSU IRB, an integral member of the provost’s NTT Advisory Council, a member on KSU’s Data Science/Data Analytics Committee. Additionally, Dr. Gibson is co-chair of the 2021 KSU Campus Climate Questionnaire Development Subcommittee.
Before joining KSU, Dr. Gibson was the Research Director for the National Registry of Emergency Medical Technicians (NREMT). While with the NREMT, he conducted a number of research projects drawing upon survey research methods and qualitative-focused methods, including focus groups, nominal groups, ethnographies, and key informant interviews. Dr. Gibson is a member of the American Association for Public Opinion Research. Dr. Gibson's research areas include survey research, gender, and prosocial behaviors, such as heroism and altruism.
Research Associates
Tim Rose, Ph.D., Field Operations Coordinator, joined the SRL team in the Fall of 2014, after having served as a telephone interviewer on several survey projects. Tim has developed a variety of survey instruments, with a specialty in social psychological surveys. He has also served as Senior Project Manager on a variety of projects, including organizational climate studies, and has begun designing climate instruments for organizations within Kent State University.
Craig Wawrosch, BA, is the current Project Manager for the SRL. Craig “rose up through the ranks” first as a telephone interviewer, then a telephone interviewer trainer, an Assistant Supervisor, and finally as the Project Manager. With occasional support from Dr. Timothy Rose, Craig programs all non-CDC projects consisting of internal to KSU and external to KSU projects. Craig also meets with project stakeholders, refines client deliverables, and according to Dr. Gibson, “is a key component to the SRL’s current success.”
Supervisors
Quality data collection starts with our two Senior Supervisors—Veronica (Ronny) Besett and Jane Howe. Their duties include interviewing and hiring the best interviewers for data collection projects, development and implementation of methods to ensure strict adherence to procedures and protocols, refusal conversion, and conducting interviewer training (both initial and refresher sessions).
Having joined the SRL in 2012, Ronny Besett’s experience draws upon her quality assurance and interviewer supervisory skills first honed at Venture Data. Ronny is responsible for all scheduling for the SRL’s three CDC Pregnancy Risk Assessment Monitoring System (PRAMS) projects. Additionally, Ronny serves as our quality assurance telephone interviewer supervisor, training and monitoring all PRAMS telephone interviewers. PRAMS is a CDC-sponsored population-based surveillance system designed to identify and monitor pertinent maternal experiences, habits, and behaviors that occur before and during a mother’s pregnancy. PRAMS projects require strict adherence to CDC guidelines for all aspects of data collection. Calling PRAMS data collection is “rigorous,” which requires precision and strong attention to detail needed to collect data for this CDC project’s level of confidentiality.
Jane Howe joined the SRL in 2012, as a telephone interviewer and is now the Administrative Supervisor for the SRL and PRAMS projects. She has over 36years of data collection, analytical and client driven administrative experience. Previous to joining KSU, Jane assisted major corporations such as Konica Minolta, IBM, NIKE, DuPont and Goodyear with project management and standard operating procedures. When not working, Jane relaxes with her husband, their BFF rescue pup of almost 15 years, Chester, and finds ways to remotely connect and support her daughter, who recently moved to Massachusetts to work for Harvard Medical on her way to grad school.
Both Ronny and Jane are considered by Director Dr. Gibson to be “the back bone of SRL CATI data collection efforts. It’s an honor to work with both Jane and Ronny. Day in and day out, they make the SRL shine.”
Bilingual Assistant Supervisor
Elisa Suarez, B.A., joined the SRL team in early 2019 as a fully certified PRAMS telephone interviewer. Elisa is a recent Kent State graduate with degrees in Criminal Justice and Sociology. She hopes to apply to graduate school. Elisa has a baby turtle assistant (Barty) that has helped her stay on track with work. Elisa’s stellar work ethic has resulted in her promotion from Bilingual Interviewer to Bilingual Supervisor.
Graduate Student Research Associates (RAs)
Maddy Steward, B.A., joined the SRL at the beginning of Fall 2019 and has been in the position of Data Manager for the Indian PRAMS project since August 2020. Maddy is a graduate student with the Sociology department and is scheduled to graduate with her masters this Spring 2021. Following that, she will be working towards her Ph.D. and is scheduled to graduate from the doctoral program in Spring 2024. Maddy's research interests revolve around topics of gender and inequality. Maddy's favorite quote is "when a flower doesn't bloom, you fix the environment in which it grows, not the flower" from Alexander Den Heijer. Maddy is a proud plant mom with her latest additions include three moss balls and a Bearpaw succulent that get far too much attention now that Maddy can work from home.
Shayna Morrison, MA, is a Ph.D. student in Kent's Sociology Department and is passionate about women's health. With over 12 years of experience working in the social service sector, six of which were spent advocating for the rights of disenfranchised women, Shayna is excited to bring her experience to the SRL PRAMS team. As a mother herself, Shayna acknowledges the importance of PRAMS research in informing public policy, practice, and feminist discourse. She is also honored to be a part of the teams developing the KSU Campus Climate Survey and KSU’s Data Science/Data Analytics Survey.
CDC PRAMS Certified Telephone Interviewers
Stefanie Beer began working as an interviewer for the SRL in 2010. She enjoys contributing to the health of mothers and babies through her work on the PRAMS project. She is a native of Kent and feels a strong connection to the university and the city.
Audrey Combs joined the SRL telephone interviewing team in late 2019 as a bilingual interviewer on the HARC project. She became a fully certified PRAMS interviewer early in 2020. Audrey is a KSU? senior studying Spanish translation and pre-law. She is set to graduate in Spring of 2021 and hopes to attend law school. Audrey’s favorite quote is by Ruth Bader Ginsburg: “Real change, enduring change, happens one step at a time.” Audrey has been on the Dean’s List all four years thanks to help from her friends, family, and co-workers. She gladly embraces the SRL PRAMS motto of “Making the world a better place one mom at a time.”
Laura Gamba, Bilingual Interviewer, is a recent KSU graduate and holds a B.S. in Biotechnology. Laura is a dedicated PRAMS interviewer. She hopes to pursue a career in the research field before applying for graduate school. She believes having hands-on experience is the best way to know what you truly want in life.
Janice Nuspl is a Senior Interviewer for the SRL. Janice has been with the SRL since late 2013 and is known for her penchant for detail. Janice regularly fulfills her civic duties as a poll worker during local, state, and national elections.
Mallory Woods joined the SRL telephone interviewing team in January of 2019 working on the HARC project. She now interviews mothers for the PRAMS project. Mallory is currently a junior majoring in Spanish translation with a minor in economics and a TEFL certificate. She plans to graduate in 2022 and hopes to teach English abroad before pursuing graduate school. Mallory’s favorite quote is “Do one thing every day that scares you.” She is currently working remotely and is grateful for all of the opportunities provided by the SRL!