[1] Following the completion of her postdoctoral research, Whitaker became a professor of microbiology at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, where she has been recognized among 'Teachers Ranked as Excellent.'
[2] The Whitaker lab studies the dynamics of microbes and their viruses using a combination of genomics, experimental evolution, modeling, and molecular biology.
In particular, the Whitaker lab focuses on the hyperthermophlic archaeon Sulfolobus islandicus and the Gram-negative gammaproteobacterium Pseudomonas aeruginosa as model organisms for studying microbial evolution.
Outreach initiatives that Whitaker promotes include Project Microbe, a series of inquiry-based activities that teach about the three domains of life (Eukarya, Bacteria, and Archaea).,[4] and Cena y Ciencias, a program that encourages scientific learning in elementary school students of the Spanish-speaking community.
[5] Whitaker developed the Project Microbe initiative with Barbara Hug from the Department of Curriculum and Instruction at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.