Vice President for Research

Dr. Caren Frost is the Associate Vice President for Research Integrity and Compliance and  Research Professor of Social Work.

Education & Research

Born in San Francisco, California, Dr. Caren Frost received her B.A. degree in European & Japanese History at the University of Utah, her M.P.H. degree in Population & Family Health at Columbia University, and her Ph.D. in Applied, Culture & Medical Anthropology at the University of Utah. During her education, Dr. Frost joined the U.S. Peace Corps and traveled to Morocco, North Africa to serve as a teacher of English as a foreign language (TEFL teacher).

In 2001, Dr. Frost joined the University of Utah faculty in the College of Social Work as a research professor.  Dr. Frost’s research work is focused health and wellbeing.  She and colleagues are updating the Circle of Health tool to holistically measure women’s health, as well as validating a tool to effectively measure the concept of “integration.” Dr. Frost’s work promotes interdisciplinary and collaborative applied research with faculty, students, and community partners. She is currently funded through the Health Resources and Services Administration (two grants that focus on providing training for paraprofessionals and students in the SUDTTC program) as well as through the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (one grant determining how businesses have managed worker health in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic).

Academic and Leadership Impact

Dr. Frost brings a wealth of knowledge and expertise in research integrity and compliance activities to the university. Dr. Frost has served as the Associate Director of the Middle East Center (2010-2011), Directorof the Center for Research on Migration & Refugee Integration (2016-2019,) Co-Chair of the Institutional Review Board (2015-2020), and in other various leadership and committee roles at the university.  In 2019, Dr. Frost joined the Associate Vice President for Research Integrity and Compliance (AVPRIC) team as the Director of the Office of Research Integrity and Compliance. Since 2021, she serves as the AVPRIC and the Research Integrity Officer and the Director of the Office of Quality Compliance.

Throughout her leadership, Dr. Frost has spearheaded many research initiatives across campus and revitalized the Office of Research Education. In addition, Dr. Frost has collaborated with research administration and leadership across campus to develop the U’s new authorship and research misconduct policies. She has also launched the U’s compliance management toolkit to provide PIs and research staff with adaptable tools to effectively manage research activities and standard operating procedures for all research and clinical studies.