The Emory BIRCWH Program is a multidisciplinary education program designed to provide career development training and support for outstanding junior faculty interested in innovative and high impact women's health research. In the initial project period, our program plan was focused on building a sustainable BIRCWH-specific career development infrastructure with the following components: a) A diverse and cohesive leadership structure; b) An effective approach for identifying and recruiting a diverse cohort of promising junior faculty with interest in developing a career in women's health research; c) A women's health tailored didactic research training program that leverages existing infrastructure to maximize economy of scale; and d) A mentoring career development program that is adapted to the needs of the individual Scholar. Applying these metrics, the Emory BIRCWH has made significant contributions to the Office of Research in Women's Health's mission to promote women's health research and the science of sex differences. Our training plan is firmly tethered to relevant institutional programs including Emory University Laney Graduate School's Master of Science in Clinical Research program. We attracted some of the best and brightest cadre of junior faculty who have leveraged the BIRCWH support to advance their careers, receiving NIH funding in excess of $16 M as PIs, and publishing 86 peer-reviewed papers during their training in the BIRCWH. We therefore look forward with great enthusiasm to the next project period. It will take the Emory BIRCWH to a new level of enhanced impact through consolidation of successful program activities, and piloting of new initiatives and best practices aimed at further enriching the training experience for our Scholars and facilitating their transition into research independence. We propose the following specific aims: a) Expand our program administrative structure to meet the growing needs of the Emory BIRCWH, and leverage this expansion as a tool for practical leadership skill development for the next generation of BIRCWH and women's health leaders; b) Continue to leverage and partner with available institutional infrastructure for individualized didactic research training in research fundamentals and methodology to advance women's health research and the science of sex/gender differences; c) Refine our multidisciplinary mentored career development program by adding community mentors to broaden the impact of scholars' research; and d) Enhance and continue to the implementation of our successful campus-wide approach for identifying and recruiting a diverse cohort of promising candidates. The Emory BIRCWH enjoys the support of the University community from the grassroots to the top leadership. The Emory BIRCWH will receive direct institutional dollars of $625,000 over the next 5 years in addition to substantial in-kind support during the next funding cycle.
The Emory BIRCWH Program will provide career development training and support for early career investigators interested in women?s health research and sex/gender science, with a specific focus on training racial/ethnic minority candidates. The program will oversee a formal curriculum that includes didactic training and one-on-one mentoring by interdisciplinary senior investigators. The ultimate goal is to develop the next generation of leaders in women?s health research.
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