Team

We Are Passionate About What We Do

Our team is devoted to user-centered research and development to identify solutions to societal, functional, and policy issues that affect everyday activities in the home.

Team Members

  • Wendy A. Rogers, Ph.D.
    Director Wendy A. Rogers, Ph.D., is the Shahid and Ann Carlson Khan Professor of Applied Health Sciences. Her primary appointment […]
  • Harshal Mahajan, Ph.D.
    Assistant Director of Research Harshal P. Mahajan, Ph.D., is a Research Assistant Professor in the College of Applied Health Sciences. […]
  • Robert Pawlik
    Robert is overseeing use of research facilities, designing processes and procedures for the lab operations including safety and environmental consideration […]
  • Alyssa Stanfield
    CHESOperations Manager Alyssa Stanfield, is the Assistant Director for the Center on Health, Aging, and Disability (CHAD), and the Program […]
  • Samuel A. Olatunji, Ph.D.
    Samuel is a Post-doctoral Research Associate in the Department of Kinesiology and Community Health. He serves as a research fellow […]

Current Interns

Joanna Huang is a junior studying Computer Science and minoring in Disability Studies and Interdisciplinary Health Technology. She is passionate about accessible computing and assistive technology. In particular, she aims to utilize software to facilitate daily tasks for individuals with disabilities and enable them to live with greater independence. Her current work with the Stretch RE1 Robot involves programming the autonomous mobile robot to complete an Independent Activity of Daily Living (IADL) table cleaning task.

Picture of Sierra Speckmann for current interns tab

Sierra Speckmann is the current intern for CHART (Collaborations Health, Aging, Research, and Technology). She also works as an intern for McKechnie Family Life Home. She currently attends the University of Illinois as a Business and Communication Major and hopes to one day have a career in Marketing! Her research interests include neighborhood influence on health for older adults with chronic conditions and the effects of fossil fuels on the environment.

Intern Alumni

 Maya Dye Maya Dye – 2021Headshot of Vedant Rakshe Vedant Rakshe – 2022 Headshot of Ben Granados Ben Granados – 2022  

Our team is
energetic, creative, diverse, interdisciplinary,
transgenerational, multicultural
with a shared passion for improving lives.

Acknowledgments

The McKechnie Family LIFE Home would not have been possible without the contributions of those listed below.  The entire McKechnie Family LIFE Home team would like to sincerely thank those listed for their contributions to the completion of this project.

Planning

  • Bill Goodman
  • Jeff Woods
  • Kesh Kesavadas
  • Brian Jones
  • Jon Sanford

Design and Construction

  • Tilton Kelly Bell LLC Architecture (Kim Sarchet)
  • JohnCo Construction
  • Bodine Electrical
  • Clarence Odom

Interior Design

  • Deana McDonagh
  • Stocks Furniture (Terry Martin)

Administrative

  • Mike Bohlmann
  • Elizabeth Clawson
  • Matt Drain
  • Bryan Jones
  • Mark Joseph
  • Suzanne Rinehart

Web Design

  • Brett Luce
  • Dick Detzner
  • Tom Eggemeier 
  • Barry Beith