Liz Marai

Liz Marai is a Professor of Computer Science at the University of Illinois Chicago (UIC), a University of Illinois Scholar across all campuses (Chicago, Springfield, Urbana-Champaign), and holds multiple leadership positions. She is the founder and Director of the UIC Institute for Health Data Science Research and a faculty member at the Electronic Visualization Laboratory (EVL). Additionally, she serves as a UIC Senator (2023-2026) representing the College of Engineering, a Faculty Fellow in the UIC Honors College, a full member of the University of Illinois Cancer Center (UICC), and serves on the Executive Committee of the Discovery Partners Institute (DPI). She is also a chartered National Institutes of Health study section member (2024-2028).

Her research focuses on human-centered data science, with specialization in visual computing and analysis—exploring how humans interact with visually represented data. This includes work in AI-driven tools, collaborative urban computing, biomedical interfaces, high-performance computing, and spatial analytics for healthcare. Her interdisciplinary approach bridges computer science with healthcare, environmental studies, and social sciences.

Awards and Honors:

• NSF CAREER Award
• Multiple NSF research awards
• Lead investigator on multi-site NIH R01 awards
• Multiple Outstanding Research Awards at conferences
• Test of Time Award
• Seven Teaching Awards for pedagogical innovation

Teaching and Advising: She teaches core courses including CS 529: Visual Data Science and CS 426: Video Game Design. As Director of Graduate Admissions and Co-Director of Graduate Studies, she oversees academic programs and mentors students. Her teaching integrates research, resulting in open-source software adopted globally.

Labs and Initiatives: Directs the UIC Institute for Health Data Science Research and collaborates at EVL, developing tools like SAGE3 (collaborative data environments) and health-focused projects (e.g., cancer disparities analysis, precision radiomics). Her work emphasizes democratizing data access and fostering teamwork through immersive technologies.