Javier A. Rodríguez, Ph.D., is Professor of Biological Sciences.

Rodríguez joined UNLV in 2002 as an Assistant Professor of Biological Sciences. He soon took on leadership positions at the university, including serving as Assistant Director and Associate Director of the School of Life Sciences from 2007 to 2010, and as Vice Dean of the College of Sciences from 2011 to 2018. He most recently served as Vice Provost for Academic Programs, in the Provost Office. Rodríguez is a member of UNLV’s Ombuds Advisory Panel.

Rodríguez is an evolutionary biologist whose research focuses on the systematics (the discovery of the diversity and evolutionary history of organisms) and population and evolutionary ecology of lizards, snakes, and frogs. His laboratory has investigated the geographical distribution of genealogical lineages of species from the Puerto Rican Bank, in the eastern Caribbean Sea, and the feeding ecology of snakes from western North America. He has taught courses in evolution, biology of amphibians and reptiles, ethics in scientific research, scientific presentations, and advanced topics in life sciences.

Rodríguez received his doctoral degree in Integrative Biology from the University of California, Berkeley. He earned his bachelor and master of science degrees in Biology from the University of Puerto Rico, Río Piedras.