EIU Media Relations

Director of Grants and Research Named at EIU

Robert W. Chesnut has been named the new director of the Office of Grants and Research at Eastern Illinois University.

He will officially begin his duties as director on July 1, replacing Edwin L. "Bud" May who retired from the university in September 2003 after 25 years of service to the university. Chesnut has served as acting director since January 2004.

As director, his primary responsibilities will include the leadership and administration of the university's grants and research programs. These duties include ensuring compliance with regulations, assisting the university's constituents with identifying sources of external funding, implementing policies and providing a comprehensive administration for the unit.

Chesnut was selected following a national search and has excellent credentials for leading the unit, said Robert Augustine, dean of Eastern's Graduate School . Chesnut's experience includes a blend of research and administrative disciplines, a record of obtaining internal and external funding, and experience administering an office of grants and research.

Chesnut holds both a bachelor of science degree in chemistry and a bachelor of business administration from Andrews University . He holds a Ph.D. in chemistry from Purdue University and an MBA from the University of Chicago .

He has recent publications in Synthetic Communications , Journal of the Chemical Society and Organometallics. For his own research, he recently secured funding from the Penny Severns Breast and Cervical Cancer Fund, Research Corporation and the National Institutes of Health.

Chesnut is a 2003 recipient of the Eastern Illinois University Teacher Scholar Award.