Rate My Professor Jennifer Schroeder

Jennifer Schroeder is Professor of Biology and Interim Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences at Millikin University, where she joined as Associate Professor of Biology in 2008. She earned B.S. degrees in Chemistry and Zoology from Eastern Illinois University, followed by an M.S. and Ph.D. in Molecular and Integrative Physiology from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Schroeder teaches introductory biology courses for non-majors in both traditional and PACE programs, upper-level physiology and developmental biology, global healthcare (IN350), and pathophysiology in the DNP nurse anesthesia program through the School of Nursing. She also serves as Director of Academic Effectiveness, assisting faculty and programs with assessment, Accreditation Liaison Officer to the Higher Learning Commission, and Director of the School of Biological and Environmental Studies. Additionally, she has chaired the Biology department.

Schroeder's research interests span cancer, endocrinology, and reproductive biology. She utilizes breast cancer cell lines as model systems for toxicity testing and investigates pesticides as endocrine disruptors. Her scholarly contributions include peer-reviewed publications such as "Cell- and Ligand-specific Regulation of Promoters Containing Activator Protein-1 and Sp1 Sites by Estrogen Receptors and AP-1" in the Journal of Biological Chemistry (2005) and "Differential regulation of the human progesterone receptor gene through an estrogen response element half site and Sp1 sites" in The Journal of Steroid Biochemistry and Molecular Biology (2004). Schroeder has earned recognition for her teaching and leadership, including the Teaching Excellence and Campus Leadership Award in 2015, the Teaching Excellence Award in 2018, and the Phi Kappa Phi Love of Learning Award in 2024. Internationally acknowledged for promoting academic integrity, she mentors undergraduate students in research projects on breast cancer and environmental toxicology, contributing to presentations at the Millikin University Poster Symposium and advancing student scholarship in biological sciences.