About

Message from the Director

“Would you like to gain some research experience in a world class sleep and performance research facility?” That’s what Bryan Vila, my mentor and one of the founding members of the Sleep and Performance Research Center (SPRC), asked when I came to WSU from Ireland to begin my PhD journey. I began as a research assistant at the SPRC in 2008 and never looked back.

The SPRC was built from funds secured through the efforts of former Congressman George Nethercutt. Greg Belenky, Jim Krueger, Dave Rector, Hans Van Dongen, and Bryan Vila established a state-of-the-art sleep research laboratory and adjoining simulation laboratory in Spokane. In 2008 the SPRC became an official Faculty Senate-approved center of the university and quickly started to expand and grow an impressive portfolio of extramural funding. Other faculty members joined to teach in the medical sciences program, and the SPRC gained national and international recognition.

Today, the SPRC connects the sleep and performance-related research programs of more than twenty core faculty, a handful of affiliated faculty, and countless staff and students across seven of WSU’s colleges.

There is overwhelming evidence that sleep is essential for performance, safety, health, and well-being. Yet, in today’s 24/7 society, there is a need for people to be awake and at work across all hours of the day. Extended work hours and night and shift work compete with the biological need to sleep and with daily rhythms driven by biological clocks. SPRC faculty conduct research to answer critical questions about the effects of reduced and displaced sleep on performance and health.

Collaborating across a wide range of disciplines, the SPRC faculty are at the forefront of research to unravel the mystery of sleep.

Lois James, PhD

SPRC Director
Core Faculty
lois_james@wsu.edu

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