Leadership
IFSH Management
Robert E. Brackett, PhD, IIT Vice President and IFSH Director/Co-Director, National Center for Food Safety and Technology
Jason Wan, PhD, Associate Director and Acting Director, Center for Specialty Programs
Britt Burton-Freeman, PhD, Director, Center for Nutrition Research
Jack Cappozzo, Director, Chemistry
Alvin Lee, PhD, Director, Center for Processing Innovation
Armand Paradis, Director, Business Development
Ed Steiner, Director, Facilities
A, Todd Diel, Safety Officer
Lacey Guillen, PhD, Manager, Proficiency Testing and Method Validation, Center for Specialty Programs
David Griesemer, IFSH Librarian
Stephen F. Grove, PhD, Manager, Industry Projects, Center for Processing Innovation
Margie Juergensmeyer, PhD, Biosafety Officer
Renee McBrien, Manager, Education and Outreach
Barbara Neuman, Finance
Eduardo Patazca, Manager, Pilot Plant
Qian (Sherry) Sui, Project Leader, Special Projects, Center for Specialty Programs
Osvaldo Verlarde, Manager, IFSH Information Technology
Darsh Wasan, Founder and Advisor
FDA DFPST Directors, Chiefs and Team Leaders
Richard McDonald, PhD, Director, FDA Division of Food Processing Science & Technology/Co-Director, National Center for Food Safety and Technology
John Larkin, PhD, Chief, FDA Process Engineering Branch
Mary Lou Tortorello, PhD, Chief, FDA Food Technology Branch
Thomas Graham, PhD, Supervisor, Laboratory Proficiency and Evaluation Team
Lauren Jackson, PhD, FDA Team Leader, Food Chemistry and Nutrition Team
NCFST Science Platform Coordinators
Microbiology
Mary Lou Tortorello, PhD
Alvin Lee, PhD
Nutrition
Lauren Jackson, PhD
Britt Burton-Freeman, PhD
Processing and Packaging
John Larkin, PhD
Jason Wan, PhD
Food Chemistry
Lauren Jackson, PhD
Jack Cappozzo
Proficiency Testing and Method Validation
Ravinder Reddy, PhD
Lacey Guillen, PhD
Governance
The Institute for Food Safety and Health (IFSH), a research institute of the Illinois Institute of Technology (IIT), houses the National Center for Food Safety and Technology (NCFST) and other focused research centers in the areas of food safety, food processing technology, and nutrition and health.
NCFST is structured as a cooperative agreement between the US Food and Drug Administration’s Center for Food Safety and Nutrition (FDA CFSAN) and IIT. Industry companies and organizations are encouraged to become members of IFSH and to participate in the collaborative research program funded through this mechanism. Under the terms of NCFST’s cooperative agreement, governance and policy of the center are determined by an Executive Advisory Board composed of FDA, academic and industry members. A Technical Advisory Committee, composed of representatives from each member company and FDA, reviews research proposals and sets research priorities. Co-located at IFSH and under the cooperative agreement with NCFST, the FDA Division of Food Processing Science and Technology (DFPST) is responsible for managing FDA research programs and policy.
Day-to-day management of the institute is supplied by the IFSH Director. Staffing at IFSH includes scientists from IIT and the FDA Division of Food Processing Science and Technology, co-located at the Bedford Park facility. These researchers are experienced in the disciplines that affect food safety and quality, including food science and technology, food process engineering, biotechnology, analytical chemistry, chemical engineering, packaging, microbiology, and nutrition. In addition, visiting experts from member companies and other universities enrich the pool of available staff.