As the Associate Vice President for Research Strategy and Regulatory Affairs at Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU), Lisa Richman Ballance brings over 25 years of experience reflecting the breadth of the complexity of the academic research enterprise. Ballance oversees critical elements of the institutional assurance of research integrity and ethics supporting public trust, including oversight of human and animal research ethics programs as well as clinical research regulatory affairs.  With this lens, Ballance integrates research integrity and ethics into every aspect of the institutional research strategic priorities plan, including investments in infrastructure necessary to support research growth. VCU is a public R1 and ranked in the top 50 academic research institutions in the US, located in Richmond, Virginia. Ballance earned a master's degree in applied rhetoric in research ethics and professional certifications/credentials including Certified Compliance Professional, Lean Six-Sigma Green Belt, and Certified Clinical Research Professional.