Four Women Scholars Who Are Taking On New Duties

Jessica Kissinger has earned the distinction of University Professor at the University of Georgia. She is a distinguished research professor in the department of genetics in the Franklin College of Arts and Sciences at the university. Dr. Kissinger is also a founding member of the university’s Institute of Bioinformatics, which she directed from 2011 to 2019. Her laboratory studies parasite genomics and the biology of genome evolution.

Dr. Kissinger received her bachelor’s degree from the University of Chicago and her Ph.D. in molecular, cellular, and developmental biology from Indiana University.

Jodi Benenson has been promoted to associate director of the School of Public Administration at the University of Nebraska-Omaha. She currently serves as an associate professor and co-chair of the school’s master of public administration program. Her research focuses on civic engagement, social policy, and nonprofit organizations.

Dr. Benenson received her bachelor’s degree and master of public administration degree from Indiana University. She holds a master’s degree and a Ph.D. in social policy from Brandeis University in Massachusetts.

Carolyn F. Ross has been promoted to Regents Professor in the School of Food Science at Washington State University. A faculty member with the university for the past two decades, she currently directs the Washington State University Sensory Science Center. In her research, she studies the sensory perception of foods and their effects on eating behavior, specifically for children with Down Syndrome.

Dr. Ross holds a bachelor’s degree in human ecology in foods and nutrition from University of Manitoba in Canada, a master’s degree in food science from the University of Guelph in Canada, and a Ph.D. in food science and environmental toxicology from Michigan State University.

Krista S. Walton has been named vice chancellor for research and innovation at North Carolina State University. She comes to her new role from the Georgia Institute of Technology, where she is the associate vice president for research operations and infrastructure and a professor in the School of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering.

Dr. Walton earned her bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering from the University of Alabama and her Ph.D. in chemical engineering from Vanderbilt University.