Staff
Martha Van Haitsma | Director
Martha Van Haitsma, Ph.D., earned her M.A. from the University of Texas at Austin and her Ph.D. from the University of Chicago. In both programs she worked on research projects that combined survey, observation and open-ended interview. Van Haitsma has co-directed or directed the Survey Lab since its inception. Van Haitsma has many years of training and experience in field research and is particularly interested in the considerations involved in the appropriate choice and combination of qualitative and quantitative methods. Dr. Van Haitsma taught several practical methods courses in the College before starting at the Survey Lab and has been teaching graduate-level research methods courses at the University since 1999.
Kevin Ulrich | Assistant Director
Kevin Ulrich assists the director in all aspects of research design and implementation as well as taking a lead roll in administrative, financial and operational matters. He holds a BA in Sociology from the University and is completing a graduate degree in the social sciences. Ulrich served as a non-commissioned officer in the United States Navy prior to embarking on an academic career.
David Chearo | Operations Manager
David Chearo coordinates and oversees the management, staffing, and operations of Survey Lab projects. This includes strategic planning of research implementation, hiring and recruitment strategies, drafting and pretesting of questionnaires, and sample and data quality management. David holds a Masters Degree in the Social Sciences from the University of Chicago and a BA in International Studies from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign with a focus in human rights and Russia & Eastern Europe.
M. Huizar | Survey Lab Administrator
Margarita M. Huizar has extensive experience working in a variety of arenas - from law to medicine. While working for a Chicago law firm Margarita worked in business, probate and real estate transactions. She has acquired knowledge and understanding about the political world by working for a former deputy mayor and state senator. She also worked for a non-for-profit community health center that focused on providing good comprehensive health care to the uninsured and underinsured population of a highly impoverished area, where she learned first hand about the needs of a very vulnerable population. Margarita's experience and skills bring important insight to the research we conduct at the Survey Lab.
