ADMINISTRATIVE CORE The Overall Goal of the Environmental Health Disparities (EHD) Maternal and Infant Environmental Health Riskscape (MIEHR) Research Center is to elucidate contributions of the biological, physical, social and built environments of the environmental riskscape to environmental health disparities in pregnant women and their infants. The MIEHR Research Center will conduct impactful research, engage communities and translate research advances to reduce disproportionate health burdens among African-Americans and build community resilience to improve maternal and infant health. As a new P50 EHD Center, the MIEHR Research Center will have a unique identity as the focal point and catalyst for research and community engagement to reduce the disproproportionate burden of environmental and place-based factors that underlie maternal and infant health inequites in the Houston area. Center Director, Dr. Symanski and co-Director, Dr. Bullard, have experience leading transdisciplinary research teams and a wealth of administrative experience in senior leadership positions that will ensure the ability of this Core to effectively manage, integrate and evaluate MIEHR Center research, engagement and training activities. Center Directors will be assisted in leadership of the Center by an Executive Committee made up of Research Project Leads and Co-leads and Directors and Co-Directors of the Investigator Development Core and Community Engagement and Dissemination Core, with additional guidance and input from an External Advisory Committee and a Community Advisory Board.
The Specific Aims of the Administrative Core are:
Specific Aim 1 : Develop and maintain an administrative structure that effectively manages the Center and promotes attainment of MIEHR Center research, community engagement and career development goals.
Specific Aim 2 : Provide integration and build synergy across MIEHR Research Center Projects and Cores that will drive improvements in the environmental riskscape of health disparity populations.
Specific Aim 3 : Develop metrics and implement evaluative activities for MIEHR Center activities that will facilitate successful completion of aims and programmatic objectives related to the Research Projects, and the Investigator Development and Community Engagement and Dissemination Cores. In summary, the Administrative Core will play a key role in ensuring the accomplishments of MIEHR Research Center goals in research, career development and community engagement by integrating multidisciplinary teams of community and academic experts from diverse backgrounds, and providing support for Center activities that develop a diverse workforce of environmental health disparities researchers and community engagement that fosters equitable community stakeholder interactions.
