Education and Enrichment Core

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A key aspect of the Northwestern University CounterAct Center of EXcellence (NUCCX) is to create a collaborative countermeasure research community. The overall goal of this core is to centralize and coordinate all of the intellectual activities of the NUCCX with an emphasis on attracting new investigators into the field of mustard injury. One of the ways that this goal can best be accomplished is through a comprehensive education and training program emphasizing personal and professional development, coupled with a vigorous community outreach effort and an unwavering commitment to recruiting women and URMs into the NUCCX community. One of the strengths of the NUCCX is its diversified group of scientists from the departments of chemistry, dermatology, immunology, medicine, ophthalmology, physics and astronomy, and urology. These scientists are located within Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine and Weinberg College of Arts and Sciences. In addition to the faculty, there will be undergraduate, graduate, medical students, residents and postdoctoral fellows. However, such diversity also brings with it the challenge of cohesivity, which will be another mission of this core. Through engagement with outreach initiatives, the Education and Enrichment program will also encompass Science in Society (SIS) and community partners including Chicago Public School partners and Boys & Girls Clubs of Chicago. Specifically, this core will: (i)l foster education and training with multidisciplinary seminars, workshops, and networking opportunities; (ii) advance personal and professional development of NUCCX trainees and investigators[ (iii) engage community partners through Northwestern University’s Science in Society (SiS); (iv) promote inclusivity and diversity within the mustard injury field; and (v) conduct evaluations of the overall program and of key aspects of the education and enrichment program, including trainee professional development. A major initiative will be the fostering of sex and minority representation in the field of mustard injury. An innovative aspect of the seminar series is that seminars will be recorded, and with the slides, curated to create continuous learning as new researchers enter into the NUCCX and the field. We envision that after a few years, an online blended course will be developed. The core will disseminate material related to the above program on the NUCCX website and through electronic communication to the local research community. With respect to sex and underrepresented minorities (URM), in coordination with the Skin Biology & Diseases Resource-Based Center (SBDRC) and T-32 Training Grant program within the Department of Dermatology, the NUCCX will align with their endeavors to attract and recruit URM and women into countermeasures research. The NUCCX training and education program will highlight research within these communities and provide networking opportunities for trainees. The Education and Enrichment Core will accomplish all of these tasks with guidance from: (i) the Steering Committee; (ii) the Internal Advisory Board; and (iii) an External Advisory Board.