Heidi Kloefkorn

Dr. Heidi Kloefkorn is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Chemical, Biological, and Environmental Engineering at Oregon State University's College of Engineering. Her research focuses on understanding the interplay between sleep quality and chronic joint degeneration, particularly in preclinical rodent models. She develops noninvasive technologies like electric field sensors and automated analytics to monitor sleep patterns, respiration, and locomotion continuously. Dr. Kloefkorn earned her PhD in Biomedical Engineering from the University of Florida (2016) and a BS from Georgia Tech (2011). She completed a postdoc at Emory University's School of Medicine and held an NIH IRACDA fellowship.

Her research interests include:

• Joint pain mechanisms and disability in chronic osteoarthritis
• Integration of sleep behavior with systemic physiological changes
• Development of unobtrusive biosensing technologies for longitudinal studies

Recent work highlights noninvasive sleep scoring via movement/respiration features and instrumented nests for cardiovascular monitoring. Her publications span neuroscience methods, biomedical devices, and osteoarthritis pathology. Awards include the NIH FIRST fellowship and Biomedical Engineering Society Career Award.

Teaching experience includes MATLAB workshops, undergraduate biology courses, and mentoring over 20 students across PhD, MS, and undergraduate levels. She actively participates in professional societies like the American Physiological Society and Society for Neuroscience, and contributes to STEM outreach through science festivals and mentoring programs.