Heather Darling, PMP

Heather is originally from Lindenhurst, Illinois – about halfway between Chicago, IL and Milwaukee, WI.  She graduated from University of Wisconsin Parkside, where she earned her Bachelors degree in Biology with a minor in Chemistry.  She started her research career at Vanderbilt in 2009 as a research assistant in the Center for Structural Biology Megalab.  In 2015, Heather joined the laboratory of Prof. Jens Meiler as laboratory manager then Manager of Research Programs.  She contributed to research projects on the structural characterization of HoxA11 and structure determination of DsbB using paramagnetic restraints.  She joined the Crowe Lab in April 2021 as Sr. Program Manager

Although research was the foundation of her training, she took an interest in the administrative side of research.  To improve her skill set, Heather regularly attends conferences offered by both NCURA and SRAi where she has received certificates in Fundamentals of Sponsored Project Administration, Departmental Research Administration, Leadership, Financial Management, Research Integrity, and Research Law.  She holds a PMP certification and is a current Project Management Institute (PMI) and Society of Research Administrators International (SRAi) member. Heather was named an SRAi 'Future of the Field' honoree in 2022.