ICPSR Biennial Meeting 2025
Presenter Bios
The presenters for the ICPSR Biennial Meeting 2025 are listed below in alphabetical order.
Annahita Akbarifard is a Data Project Assistant at ICPSR. Session(s): The Power of a Dataset: Exploring the Reach and Impact of ICPSR Archives
J. Trent Alexander is the Associate Director of ICPSR and the Jerome Martin Clubb Collegiate Research Professor in the Institute for Social Research at the University of Michigan. Alexander is a historical demographer and builds social science data infrastructure. He is currently leading the Decennial Census Digitization and Linkage Project (joint with Katie Genadek) and ResearchDataGov (joint with Lynette Hoelter). These projects are supported by awards from the National Science Foundation, the National Institute on Aging, the U.S. Census Bureau, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, and the Ballmer Group. Session(s): Building the Largest and Longest Longitudinal Population Database in the United States
David Arnold is a Research Area Specialist at ICPSR and a member of the Privacy & Security Team under the leadership of Joseph Saul. David has been leading legal research for the Administration for Children and Families (ACF) Privacy and Confidentiality Law Compendium Project since 2021. With expertise in data privacy and confidentiality law, David holds a J.D. from the University of Toledo College of Law and maintains CIPP/US and CIPM certifications from the International Association of Privacy Professionals (IAPP). Session(s): AI and Social Research: A Journey into the Great Unknown
Katherine Baisden is a data project manager at ICPSR. Since joining ICPSR in 2024, she has worked on the PEERS Project (Partnership for Expanding Education Research in STEM) and on the Consortium Archive. Session(s): Data Discovery Campfire: Unveiling New & Noteworthy ICPSR Member Data
Sara Britt, MPH is the Health and Medical Care Archive (HMCA) and Patient-Centered Outcomes Data Repository (PCODR) Data Project Manager at ICPSR, where she has worked since 2009. She currently manages data archives funded by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) and the Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Initiative (PCORI) and long-term data acquisition projects, such as the Qualitative Data Sharing project. Session(s): Lightspeed Talks
Stephanie Carpenter is the Assistant Director of the ICPSR Summer Program in Quantitative Methods. Session(s): Your Guide to the 2025 ICPSR Summer Program: Unlocking the World of Data Science and Quantitative Methods
Becky Chu is a Data Project Manager for the National Archive of Criminal Justice Data and oversees data archiving services for the National Institute of Justice and Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention. Session(s): The Power of a Dataset: Exploring the Reach and Impact of ICPSR Archives
Alexandra Cooper is the Data Services Coordinator at Queen’s University providing data and research data management support to researchers, faculty, and students. She has been involved with a number of Canadian collaborative efforts including the Ontario Council of University Libraries Ontario Data Community, Scholars Portal and Borealis Community, and the Statistics Canada Data Liberation Initiative’s Professional Development Committee. Working with the Digital Research Alliance of Canada, she has been a member of the Dataverse North Metadata Working Group, the Dataverse Curation Guide Working Group, and is currently a member of the Research Intelligence Expert Group. Session(s): North of 49: Continuing the Data Journey
Aalap Doshi is a product, UX, and engineering leader with over 15 years of experience designing and building user-centered digital solutions. He currently serves as Director of IT at ICPSR, University of Michigan, where he leads interdisciplinary teams across UX, Product, DevOps, Data Engineering, and Development. Aalap has co-founded award-winning platforms, developed large-scale systems, and created accessible tools. He is an Adjunct Lecturer at the University of Michigan School of Information and the teaches “Navigating Ambiguity in UX.” Session(s): Unlocking the Future of Data: A Sneak Peek into ICPSR’s Modernized Software Platform!
As head of the Membership & Communications Unit at the ICPSR, Linda Detterman leads a team that’s blazing new paths across ICPSR’s expansive terrain—navigating everything from websites and visual design to video, content, social media, conferences, and from member relationships to supporting the ever-popular ICPSR Summer Program. Her journey began at MORPACE International, where she climbed to Vice President of Planning and Research. From there, she explored new terrain in strategic planning roles at Doner Advertising and The Los Angeles Times. With a BA from Alma College and an MBA from Duke University, Linda is well-equipped with both academic insight and real-world know-how. Much like a summer hike through Michigan’s woods—full of discovery, fresh air, and forward motion—Linda’s leadership brings clarity and energy to ICPSR’s digital world. She and her team are clearing a trail for a future where data are more accessible, engaging, and empowering. Session(s): Workshop: Understanding Methods Metadata (AKA: “I didn’t take methods and I don’t want to, just tell me what I need to know”); Workshop: Camp ICPSR: Exploring the Data Wilderness with Tools, Tips, and Member Benefits; Exposing Students to Data, With and Without the Data
Barbara Esty is the Head of Data Services at Yale University Library. She assists faculty and students from across the university find, acquire, use, and manage data throughout the research data lifecycle. With over twenty-five years of experience working in academic libraries, Barbara brings a broad perspective on data support with an interest on making data accessible to researchers at all levels. Workshop(s): OR and DR Boot Camp! Fundamentals and the Evolution of the Official and Designated Representative Role
Jane Fry is the Data Services Librarian at MacOdrum Library, Carleton University (Ottawa, Canada). She has been ‘doing data’ for over 20 years and continues to be an active member in her regional, national and international data communities. She is also a past member of the ICPSR Governing Council and past Chair of the Portage Training Expert Group. She has been honoured with the William H. Flanigan Award for Distinguished Service as an ICPSR Official Representative. Jane loves working with data and making data easily accessible and understandable is her main passion at work! Session(s): North of 49: Continuing the Data Journey
Libby Hemphill is an associate research professor at ICPSR and an associate professor at the School of Information. She studies artificial intelligence and data archives, especially how AI can facilitate data discovery and reuse. At ICPSR, she directs the Resource Center for Minority Data and the Social Media Archive. She also helps with projects related to cloud-based data enclaves and big data. Session(s): Data in Action: Solutions for Recovery and Resilience
Lynette Hoelter is the director of Instructional Resources and the National Archive of Data on Arts and Culture at ICPSR. She also co-leads an effort to support federal statistical agencies as they standardize the discovery and application processes for their restricted microdata (ResearchDataGov.org), among other projects. Common across Lynette’s work is the desire to help individuals find, access, and use the data that best fit their needs and to foster quantitative reasoning skills in students and the public. Session(s): Camp ICPSR: Exploring the Data Wilderness with Tools, Tips, and Member Benefits; AI and Social Research: A Journey into the Great Unknown; Exposing Students to Data, With and Without the Data
Jeannette Jackson serves as the Managing Director of the Research Data Ecosystem (RDE), funded by a $38M National Science Foundation Mid-Scale Infrastructure grant to modernize the ICPSR software platform and build tools to support the research data lifecycle. In her previous role, Jeannette was the founding Managing Director of the BioSocial Methods Collaborative, an interdisciplinary research methods hub at the Institute for Social Research, where she was instrumental in launching the state-of-the-art U-M HomeLab facility. In both roles, Jeannette is committed to advancing scientific discovery by fostering conditions to support interdisciplinary research endeavors. She holds an MBA from the University of Michigan Ross School of Business and BA in Economics from Smith College. Session(s): Unlocking the Future of Data: A Sneak Peek into ICPSR’s Modernized Software Platform!
Euijin Jung is a User Experience Designer from the Product & User Experience Team at ICPSR. He is currently designing products and working to improve user experience for File management service and leading ICPSR design system. Session(s): Working Breakfast / Poster Display
Isabella Kneeland is a Research Associate and a part of the Junior Professional Researcher (JPR) Program through ISR and under the leadership of Amy Pienta. Her research interests include substance abuse and mental health disparities among urban, rural, and unhoused populations. Isabella holds a BA in Psychology from Saint Norbert College. After her completion of the JPR program she plans on pursuing a PhD in Clinical Psychology. Session(s): The Power of a Dataset: Exploring the Reach and Impact of ICPSR Archives
Stephanie Labou is the Data Science Librarian at the University of California San Diego Library. A professional “data enthusiast”, Stephanie spends her time helping students and faculty find, access, analyze, and visualize data. She also teaches short-form workshops on coding skills and data best practices, and enjoys introducing students and peers to the wonderful world of programmatic and reproducible data analysis. Workshop(s): OR and DR Boot Camp! Fundamentals and the Evolution of the Official and Designated Representative Role; Session(s): Your Guide to the 2025 ICPSR Summer Program: Unlocking the World of Data Science and Quantitative Methods
Maggie Levenstein has served as ICPSR Director since 2016 and has been on the faculty at the University of Michigan since 1990. She is a Professor in the School of Information and previously taught the Economics Department and in the Ross School of Business. She received a Ph.D. in economics from Yale University and a B.A. from Barnard College, Columbia University. Her research and teaching interests include industrial organization, competition policy, business history, data confidentiality protection, and the improvement of economic statistics. Session(s): ICPSR Council Welcome Reception; Luncheon & State of the Consortium; ICPSR Awards Dinner
Jenny Li is a User Experience Designer on the CNS – User Experience Team at ICPSR. She is the product designer for the Research Data Gov Restricted Data Application System and TurboCurator, a tool that uses AI to recommend and pre-fill metadata fields for research data deposits. Currently, she is designing for ICPSR’s new Deposit Manager system, working to create a smoother, more intuitive deposit experience for researchers. Session(s): Working Breakfast / Poster Display
Kevin Manuel is the Data Librarian at Toronto Metropolitan University Libraries. He has been an ICPSR Official Representative nearly 15 years and over the course of his career he has taken on leadership roles in the data community across Canada and internationally. As a data librarian, Kevin is committed to helping researchers and the data community understand and access data resources through online guides and scholarly publications. In 2025 he received a Toronto Metropolitan University Librarian award for his distinguished work with data literacy. Session(s): North of 49: Continuing the Data Journey
Erin Meyer is a Project Management and User Support Lead at ICPSR. Since joining ICPSR in 2020, she has worked on numerous social science data projects, with recent projects focused on record linkage methodology, access barriers for the Federal Statistical Research Data Centers (FSRDC), and the Committee on the Status of Women in the Economics Profession (CSWEP) survey. Session(s): Data in Action: Solutions for Recovery and Resilience
Sarah Rush is a senior data project manager for Data Sharing for Demographic Research (DSDR) at ICPSR. She has been with ICPSR since 2008, serving in a variety of roles before joining DSDR in 2015. DSDR, funded by the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, is a population health archive that supports research on maternal and child health, the lifecourse, health disparities, migration, and relationship dynamics in the U.S. and internationally. Session(s): The Power of a Dataset: Exploring the Reach and Impact of ICPSR Archives
Joe Saul is ICPSR’s Privacy and Security Officer; he leads data protection at ICPSR, including managing contracts for access to restricted data, FISMA security standards compliance, contingency planning, and incident response. He comes to ICPSR with nearly 30 years of public and private-sector data protection experience, including working on HIPAA implementation at Michigan Medicine and serving as CSO of a health data analytics company. Joe chairs ICPSR’s Disclosure Review Board and Restricted Data Dissemination and Access Committee, as well as leading ICPSR’s Privacy and Security Team. Joe has a J.D. from the University of Michigan Law School, and professional certifications in information security and privacy. Session(s): AI and Social Research: A Journey into the Great Unknown
Annalee Shelton is the Membership Development Director at ICPSR, supporting 800+ member institutions who are using data to make an impact on real life. Anna’s previous experience includes the Hispanic Scholarship Fund, American Red Cross and UCLA. She received her MA in Social Entrepreneurship and Change from Pepperdine University, where her thesis included teaching business practices to female entrepreneurs in Nairobi. She is the proud recipient of a Certificate of Commendation from the City of Los Angeles and an even prouder adoptive parent of an elephant. Session(s): Camp ICPSR: Exploring the Data Wilderness with Tools, Tips, and Member Benefits
Michael Steeleworthy, a member of the ICPSR Council, is a Data Librarian; Coordinator, Research Data Services, at Wilfrid Laurier University in Ontario. Steeleworthy helps faculty and students find and use socioeconomic data and statistics in their research. As the liaison to Statistics Canada, Steeleworthy collects survey microdata, connects researchers with government analysts, and encodes datasets for use. In the classroom, Steeleworthy introduces students and faculty to Canadian and international socio-economic data resources and consults on individual and team-based research projects. Steeleworthy also manages the Laurier Library’s Research Data Management Programme and coordinates the Library’s services and tools that help researchers meet their funding obligations for the management and preservation of their data. Steeleworthy consults on policy implications and recommends suitable repositories for students and faculty to store their data.
Steeleworthy received an MLIS from Dalhousie University in 2010, after studying information policy, governmental information organization and its social implications, and information literacy. Session(s): North of 49: Continuing the Data Journey
David Thomas is a senior data project manager at ICPSR. He has been with ICPSR since 2003 and has held various positions across the curation and project management teams. He has been with the Resource Center for Minority Data (RCMD) since 2007 as the archive/project manager. RCMD is an archive whose mission is to acquire, disseminate, and promote data on underrepresented populations. While its initial focus was on underrepresented populations by race and ethnicity, that focus has expanded to include underrepresented gender identity and sexual orientation. Session(s): Finding and Applying to Use Restricted Federal Data Just Got Easier!