About Us
Julie Risien
Associate Vice President for Research Advancement
Dr. Julie Risien serves as the Associate Vice President for Research Advancement. In this role, she leads the Office of Research Advancement (ORA), which is dedicated to increasing OSU’s competitiveness for federal and foundation funding by strategically leveraging the university’s unique research strengths. Read her full bio.
Leah Gorman
Lead Large Proposal Strategist
Leah Gorman serves as Lead Large Proposal Strategist, guiding faculty in developing externally funded center-scale initiatives and projects that align with the mission, vision, and strategic priorities of Oregon State University.
Erin Christensen
Strategic Proposal Development Specialist
Erin Christensen serves as Strategic Proposal Development Specialist, facilitating the development of large-scale and transdisciplinary proposals for federal, state, and private funding. Erin provides input on grant readiness and competitiveness, organizes proposal review panels, edits drafts, and writes non-technical and institutional proposal sections. Erin also contributes to research development initiatives and training that support faculty competitiveness in securing external funding.
Puja Agarwal
Transdisciplinary Research Coordinator
Puja Agarwal manages ORA’s efforts to support faculty as they advance transdisciplinary, collaborative, and solutions-oriented research. She engages and collaborates with faculty, staff, and leadership across administrative units, colleges, centers, and external partners as they manage program development, program implementation activities, and communications to advance transdisciplinary research at OSU. She serves the Research Advancement Academy and Transdisciplinary Seed Funding programs. Puja is a proud OSU Alumni and graduated with a M.S. in Computer Science in 2023.