Dean’s Diversity and Healthcare Disparity Research Awards

Applications due: January 2, 2020 at 11:59pm

Click here to apply

Program Summary:

Dean Augustine M.K. Choi is pleased to announce the third round of funding for the Dean’s Diversity and Healthcare Disparity Research Awards. The awards will support excellence in research to improve the health of women and underrepresented minorities and/or to reduce health disparities in healthcare systems and in clinical settings, either locally or globally. Research into improving the diversity and gender balance of the biomedical workforce will also be supported, as lack of a representative workforce can be linked to health disparities.

The awards are designed to further Weill Cornell Medicine’s goal of becoming a national leader in advancing diversity, inclusion, and gender equity within academic medicine. We seek proposals for basic, translational, clinical, informatics, or outcomes research that addresses health disparity areas including, but not limited to: race and ethnicity, gender and gender identity, socioeconomic status, access to healthcare, differing standards of healthcare, insurance status, age, geography, sexual orientation, and cultural beliefs.

The Dean’s Diversity and Healthcare Disparity Research Awards will provide funding for one year and will be available at four levels:

• Faculty (4 awards) - $50,000 each

• Fellows and Postdoctoral Associates (2 awards) - $25,000 each

• Residents (4 awards) - $10,000 each

• Medical and Graduate Students (4 awards) - $5,000 each (to be used for Area of Concentration Scholarly Project or Graduate Research Project)

Awardees will be required to present their research projects the year following their completion during Weill Cornell Medicine’s Diversity Week.

Eligibility Criteria

• Applicants must be full-time faculty, fellows, postdoctoral associates, medical students, or graduate students at Weill Cornell Medicine, or full-time residents or fellows at NewYork-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell Medical Center.

• Medical and graduate student applicants must be mentored by a faculty member with a primary appointment at NewYork-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell Medical Center.

• Faculty applicants must be Instructors, Assistant Professors, and Associate Professors with a primary appointment at Weill Cornell Medicine.

• Applicants must be able to complete the proposed work within 1 year or before they leave NewYork-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell Medical Center (whichever comes first).

• Applicants must have a well-developed feasible, significant, and innovative research plan focused on diversity, women’s health, diseases that disproportionately affect diverse communities, or the reduction of health disparities.

Instructions for Submitting an Application

Please provide the following items in the order listed as a single PDF file (single-spaced, 11-point Arial type with 1-inch margins). Applications should be submitted via an online portal (click here) using the

naming convention “Lastname.Firstinitial_DHDRA_Category.”

Example:

Smith.J_DHDRA_Faculty.pdf

Smith.J_DHDRA_Fellow-Postdoc.pdf

Smith.J_DHDRA_Resident.pdf

Smith.J_DHDRA_Grad-MedStudent.pdf

The Faculty award application package must include:

1. Project title and scientific abstract (250 words)

2. Key co-investigators (names and titles)

3. NIH-style biosketch of the applicant and co-investigators (limit 4 pages each)

4. Research plan (limit 5 pages)

a. Background, rationale and significance

b. Specific research objectives/aims

c. Preliminary studies (if applicable)

d. Experimental design and procedures

e. Significance of the proposed research to the Award’s diversity and health disparity goals

f. Project timeline and specific expected deliverables

5. Human subjects (if applicable). Include all sections required for an NIH application.

6. Vertebrate animals (if applicable). Include the 5-point narrative required for an NIH application.

7. References, including the full title of each work cited

8. Detailed budget (PHS 398 form)

9. Letter of support from department chair/division chief attesting to the candidate’s eligibility, resources available for support of his/her research, the candidate’s past academic record, scientific progress to date, and potential for academic career development

The Resident/Fellow/Postdoctoral Associate award application package must include:

1. Project title and scientific abstract (250 words)

2. Proposed research sponsor’s name and title

3. NIH-style biosketches of the applicant and sponsor (limit 4 pages each)

4. Sponsor’s training record (table indicating experience supervising trainees)

5. Sponsor’s current grants

6. Items 4-8 as described in Faculty award application above

7. Letter of support from sponsor

8. Two letters of reference from previous mentors or other qualified individuals

The Medical/Graduate Student award application package must include:

1. NIH-style biosketch of the applicant

2. Research proposal (AOC proposal format: see Appendix)

3. Letter of support from proposed mentor(s) and brief mentoring plan

4. Letter of recommendation from two additional faculty

5. Detailed budget (PHS 398 form)

Click here to apply

Review Process and Review Criteria:

Proposals will be evaluated by a scientific review committee through the Office of the Research Dean. The main criteria for the review of the applications are:

• Scientific merit, including potential for publication and for subsequent extramural funding of the research project

• Relevance of the proposed work to the goals of the Dean’s Diversity and Healthcare Disparity Research Awards

• Applicant’s personal qualifications and potential for academic success

• The sponsor/mentor’s experience and plans for supporting the applicant (for students/residents/fellows/postdoctoral associates)

Announcement of award recipients will be made in the late winter/early spring of 2020.

Final Report

Awardees must file a summary report one year after funds are dispersed.

Questions: 

For further information, please contact Elizabeth Omondi (elo2010@med.cornell.edu) in the Office of Diversity and Inclusion.

Request For Proposal -2020 Dean's diversity Healthcare Disparity Research Awards

The Office of Diversity and Inclusion invites nominations for the 2020 “Pioneers in Diversity” Awards

Deadline for applications: January 31, 2020

Each recipient will receive a $1,000 prize and a plaque in honor of their contributions to diversity. Nominations should include the following:

• Nominee’s curriculum vitae highlighting his/her contributions
• Nominee’s description of up to one page of how the nominee fulfills the selection criteria for this award

Instructions on how to apply:

• Documents should be emailed in PDF format with subject heading “Nominees for Pioneers in Diversity Award” to Elizabeth Omondi (elo2010@med.cornell.edu)
• Please state each one of the four awards you are applying for in the subject heading of the PDF
• Please provide the following items in the order listed as a single PDF file (single spaced, 12- point font, Arial with 1-inch margins)
  • Curriculum vitae (CV) /resume 
  • Nomination (1 page document)
• All PDF applications submitted should have the following document heading for the award you are applying for: “LastName.FirstInitial_PID_Award Name”
  • Examples:
  • Jones.F_PID_Ida Sophia Scudder.pdf 
  • Jones.F_PID_Louis Wade Sullivan.pdf 
  • Jones.F_PID_Bruce Laine Ballard.pdf 
  • Jones.F_PID_Administrative Staff.pdf

Self-nominations are welcome.

 Presentations of the award to recipients will be made at the  2019 Celebration of Diversity and Awards Ceremony during Diversity Week on April 27, 2020

Four “Pioneers in Diversity” Awards will be granted:

• The Ida Sophia Scudder, M.D. Award for Excellence in Public Service awarded to a student.
• The Bruce Laine Ballard, M.D. Award for Excellence in Mentorship awarded to a faculty member.
• The Administrative Staff Award for a staff member who embodies the spirit of cultural diversity and service.
• The Louis Wade Sullivan, M.D. Award for Excellence in Public Health Advocacy awarded to aresident or postdoctoral fellow.

The criteria for the awards are as follows:

The Ida Sophia Scudder, M.D. Award will be presented to an MD, PhD, MD\PhD, or PA student who has made significant contributions in the field of community service and providing care to the underserved.

Dr. Ida Scudder was a graduate of the first medical class that accepted women at Weill Cornell MedicalCollege. After witnessing Indian women die needlessly in childbirth, Dr. Scudder was motivated to pursue acareer in medicine to help them. Upon graduating from Cornell Medical College, she returned to India andfounded a small clinic for women that gradually grew and became the Mary Taber Schell Hospital. Recognizingthe dire need for more providers, she began training women, initially as nurses. In 1918, she started a medicalschool for girls which eventually became coeducational and is now one of India’s premier hospitals, theChristian Medical College & Hospital in Vellore. Dr. Scudder dedicated her life to the plight of Indian womenand the fight against bubonic plague, cholera and leprosy, by providing services for patients as well aseducating thousands of nurses and doctors in underserved areas to carry on her work. Dr. Scudderexemplified compassion, courage and extraordinary service to patients in need.

The Louis Wade Sullivan, M.D. Award will be presented to a resident or a postdoctoral fellow who has been an outspoken champion for health promotion and a public health advocate, especially for medically underserved populations.

 Dr. Louis Wade Sullivan is a former house officer in the Department of Medicine at the New York PresbyterianHospital. Dr. Sullivan was appointed Secretary of the United States Department of Health and Human Servicesby President George H.W. Bush. He was also the founding dean, director, and president emeritus of theMorehouse School of Medicine.  His current positions include serving as the chairman of the board of the National Health Museum in Atlanta, Georgia and as a member of the Board of Overseers of Weill CornellMedical College. As a policymaker, Dr. Sullivan advocated for a tobacco-free society, improving food labels,expanding the Head Start Program, advocating for funds for HIV/AIDS, and increasing the NIH researchbudget. As an educator, Dr. Sullivan has worked tireless to improve medical education and increase diversityin medicine. In addition to founding the Medical Education Program which later became a full-fledged medicalschool at the historically African-American Morehouse College, Dr. Sullivan also founded the Boston UniversityHematology Service and the Association of Minority Health Professions Schools. Dr. Sullivan exemplifies acommitment to promoting medical education, research, and public health.

The Bruce Laine Ballard, M.D. Award will be presented to a faculty member who demonstrates commitment to improving student life and to fostering a nurturing and supportive environment where students are able to thrive and succeed.

Dr. Bruce Ballard is the former Associate Dean for Student Affairs and Equal Opportunity Programs at WeillCornell Medical College. Dr. Ballard directed students training in psychiatry first at Harlem Hospital Center, andlater at New York Hospital-Westchester. He also directed the Travelers Summer Research FellowshipProgram, which aims to increase the number of underrepresented minorities enrolled in medical schools. Dr.Ballard has chaired the Committee of Black Psychiatrists of the American Psychiatric Association (APA) andthe Selection and Advisory Committee for the National Institute of Mental Health Minority Fellowship Programof the APA, published numerous scholarly articles, served on the editorial boards of several textbooks, andgiven presentations to various groups on ethnicity and psychiatry. As the Dean of Student Affairs, Dr. Ballardmentored, provided career guidance and often, emotional support to all students. Dr.  Ballard is known forhaving an open-door policy and for giving his home telephone number to students in the event they needed tocontact him. Dr. Ballard exemplifies the nurturing and supportive qualities of a mentor.

 The Administrative Staff award will be presented to a staff member who embodies the spirit of cultural diversity and service.

The staff award will go to an administrator or a staff person whose work has helped builda culture of service and diversity at Weill Cornell. This award honors staff members who have gone beyond thecall of duty to make sure the environment is inclusive, engaging and welcoming, and whose efforts may oftengo unnoticed. Working with patients, students, residents, and/or faculty, the recipient of this award provides theglue that binds the institution together, and helps create the supportive and nurturing environment that isneeded to pursue Weill Cornell's tripartite mission of education, research and high-quality patient care.

Grant Editing Service for Weill Cornell Members

Global Health Research Fellowship

The Weill Cornell Medicine Global Health Research Fellowship is a three-year fellowship designed to train generalist clinician-scientists for academic careers in global health research. This innovative fellowship is tailored for post-residency graduates in internal medicine, and provides a unique opportunity for essential time dedicated to field work and research training. Fellows receive intensive mentorship from international Weill Cornell faculty throughout their training.