Jennifer Nelson serves as Vice Chancellor for Research and Innovation, overseeing UNL’s research and economic development enterprise. She guides short and long-term goals for research growth; strengthens support for sponsored research, technology commercialization and industry partnerships; supports interdisciplinary centers and emerging research opportunities; and ensures the infrastructure, compliance environment and collaborative culture needed for faculty and research teams to thrive. She also plays a central role in elevating Nebraska’s national research profile, expanding external partnerships and positioning the university to compete successfully for transformational funding opportunities.

Nelson’s interim role, a position she held November 2024, focused on strengthening the university’s research culture and building connections between faculty, research support services and external partners. She led the first-ever Research and Innovation Convening on May 7, 2025, which brought together more than 200 faculty and helped set the stage for developing the university’s research identity framework, composed of six identity areas and cross-cutting areas of distinction.

Nelson also launched the university’s first Research and Innovation Showcase, inviting representatives from local and state businesses, civic groups and government to meet with faculty and learn about UNL’s capacity and capabilities.

Under Nelson’s leadership, the Office of Research and Innovation has sought more direct faculty input through focus groups to identify the resources and programs needed to advance research. Based on that feedback, the office revamped its internal funding model to better position faculty for external grants and maximize the impact of scholarly work, including the addition of an internal peer review process. R&I also launched a new cohort program focused on helping faculty accelerate readiness, competitiveness and collaboration for teams to secure major collaborative funding.

Nelson previously served as associate vice chancellor and research integrity officer in R&I. In that role, she served as a liaison to UNL’s research centers and major core facilities; led development of a campuswide research data strategy; and oversaw compliance programs including human subjects protection, animal care and conflict of interest. Before joining R&I in 2019, she was director of administration for the Center for Brain, Biology and Behavior.

A member of the UNL faculty since 2011, Nelson is research faculty in the Department of Psychology and has served as co-investigator on several National Institutes of Health-funded projects studying children’s cognitive development and health outcomes. Her research focuses on executive control development from early childhood through adolescence and its implications for mental and physical health.

Nelson earned a bachelor’s degree in psychology from UCLA and a doctorate in clinical child psychology from the University of Kansas. She completed a predoctoral clinical internship at Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital Stanford and the Children’s Health Council.