Professional Development Core

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PROJECT SUMMARY - PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT CORE. Mississippi has perhaps the greatest need for strong clinical and translational (C/T) research programs in the country. We have the highest rates of obesity and associated chronic diseases in the nation and tremendous opportunities to better understand the causes and consequences of these diseases, especially in our large minority population which suffers from a high rate of poverty, inadequate access to health care, and major health care disparities. The Professional Development Core (PDC) of the Mississippi Center for Translational Research (MCCTR) will help address Mississippi's health challenges by increasing the number of clinical and translational (C/T) investigators and health care providers with sustainable research programs focused on chronic diseases and health outcomes. A consortium of 5 Mississippi institutions along with CTR/CTSA institutions in Alabama, Louisiana, Minnesota, and Illinois has been developed to provide new opportunities for synergistic, multidisciplinary research collaborations in large, diverse patient populations as well as unique training programs for early stage investigators (ESIs). In Phase II, the PDC will enhance the Clinical/Translational Research Scholars (CTRS) Program, the Master of Science in Clinical Investigation Program, and Pipeline C/T Research Training Programs to increase the number of and diversity of independent, highly productive C/T researchers focused on important chronic diseases in Mississippi. The PDC will also enhance the Mentor Academy for ESIs and mid-career faculty members to become more effective researchers and career mentors. The PDC has developed several new programs, including a Faculty Exchange and Training Program (FETP), to promote transdisciplinary and multi-institutional collaborations among MCCTR investigators and external CTR/CTSA partner institutions. The FETP, along with a MCCTR-COBRE seminar series and frequent Work-in-Progress meetings of investigators in the MCCTR and collaborating institutions will provide unique opportunities for team-based C/T research and for improving the health of the people they serve. A new MCCTR Faculty Recruitment Program has also been developed to more rapidly increase the number of established C/T researchers in Mississippi who have demonstrated excellent mentoring skills, success of obtaining extramural research funding, and expertise in emerging technologies, epidemiology, outcomes and community-engaged research, and bioinformatics where there are currently gaps in MCCTR faculty expertise. Through these new initiatives created, organized, and delivered by the MCCTR, Mississippi will have its first ever state-wide initiative designed to build coordinated and synergistic programs among all of its major academic institutions, focused exclusively on increasing Mississippi's C/T science workforce and improving health care of its people.