Janet Lanza, Ph.D., M.S., and B.S.
- Professor Emeritus
- Expertise
Janet Lanza received her Ph.D. in 1978 in Ecology from the University of Connecticut, her M.S. in Zoology in 1972 from the University of Massachusetts, and her B.S. in Biology in 1969 from the State University of New York at Stony Brook. She was employed as an Assistant Professor of Biology at Bethany College, Bethany, West Virginia and as an Assistant and then Associate Professor of Biology at the State University of New York at Fredonia.
Dr. Lanza joined the faculty at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock in 1992 as Professor and Chairperson of Biology. At UA Little Rock, Dr. Lanza taught a wide variety of courses, especially in the areas of ecology and evolution.
Dr. Lanza has successfully applied for and implemented grant projects totaling more than $ 6.6 million. Some of these projects were for research, some for teaching, and some for service activities. Service activities that Dr. Lanza provided were 24 years as the book review editor of Ecology, an ecological journal; 10 years as co-director of the National Science Foundation-initiated University Science Scholars Program at UA Little Rock; (c) nine years as co-director of the National Science Foundation-funded Louis Stokes Alliance for Minority Participation Program at UA Little Rock; 20 years as co-director of the Arkansas STRIVE program, a state-funded, professional development program for secondary teachers of mathematics, science, and technology in Arkansas.
She also served on panels discussing career paths for young scientists, including the UA Little Rock STEM Leadership for Girls Conference in April 2016. Dr. Lanza received a Distinguished Service Citation from the Ecological Society of America, and the UA Little Rock College of Science and Mathematics Excellence in Public Service.