Haley Oliver is the vice provost for graduate students and postdoctoral scholars and the 150th Anniversary Professor of food science at Purdue University. She is the first to serve in this newly envisioned vice provost role, which was approved by the Board of Trustees in April 2024.

Her brief time in this role has been marked by notable achievements, such as increasing the flexibility of fellowship funding for PhD student recruitment and launching the Future Faculty Boot Camp to help Purdue students and postdocs navigate academic career paths at leading institutions.

Oliver leads the ongoing efforts in West Lafayette and Indianapolis to amplify and accelerate the success of Purdue’s many graduate students, professional students and postdoctoral scholars. She has held several leadership positions at Purdue, including assistant dean of ag online programs for the College of Agriculture and director of the USAID Feed the Future Innovation Lab for Food Safety. She has led initiatives to enhance the online portfolio of the College of Agriculture. She is recognized as a global leader in food safety in developing economies (e.g., Kenya, Cambodia, and Nepal) and was instrumental in developing food safety capacity in Afghanistan from 2012-17.

Oliver’s research focuses on the prevalence, persistence and transmission of foodborne pathogens, particularly Listeria monocytogenes and Salmonella, in food systems. Her work aims to develop practical control strategies to reduce cross contamination and improve food safety. Oliver is an internationally recognized expert in sanitizer and disinfectant efficacy, bridging both food and health care systems.

Her excellence in research, teaching and service has been recognized through numerous awards, including the USDA and Association of Public and Land-Grant Universities John Morrill Award, the USDA Food and Agriculture Science Excellence in Teaching Award, Purdue University’s Corinne Alexander Spirit of the Land-Grant Mission Award, the Charles B. Murphy Outstanding Undergraduate Teaching Award and the College of Agriculture Research Award.