Intramural Diversity in Medical Research Initiatives

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During FY20, NIMHD DIR supported and promoted diversity by engaging in our own diversity programs, funding other diversity initiatives across the NIH campus, focusing on increasing the diversity of applicants to fellowships and tenure-track investigator positions at NIH, and committee service activities related to NIH workforce diversity. In FY20 NIMHD DIR supported various DIR-specific and NIH-wide diversity initiatives, including sponsoring diverse trainees from the post-baccalaureate to post-doctoral levels, an underrepresented Medical Research Scholar Program fellow, and nine Coleman health disparities research awards to early career investigators. Also, we funded 9 Adjunct Investigators to conduct health disparities research and mentor racially/ethnically diverse trainees in their labs. All trainees were from underrepresented racial/ethnic groups. In response to an IRP-wide call for proposals for FY20, DIR funded 9 NIMHD William G. Coleman, Jr., awards to support health disparities research projects by early investigators. For FY20, four of our tenure-track investigators are supporting workforce diversity at NIH as active members of the NIH Distinguished Scholars Program, which aims to foster a culture of diversity and inclusion at NIH. Furthermore, three of them are participating on review committees (2 as Co-Chairs) for the NIH centralized Stadtman Tenure-Track Investigator (TTI) search. The NIMHD DIR is serving as Co-Chair of the Executive Committee (EC) of the Stadtman TTI search. In FY20 the Stadtman EC made critical changes to the application to request information from candidates on their mentoring philosophy and activities related to mentoring women and persons from underrepresented minority groups. Review committees were instructed also to include such details in their summary statements and ratings of candidates. Finally, in the area of committee and related service for FY20, Dr. Npoles continued to serve on the NIH Distinguished Scholars Program Planning Committee, the NINDS Summer Internship Program Planning Committee, the MRSP Executive Steering Committee. She advised these programs on recruitment of diverse candidates, health disparities research training content, and outcomes tracking. In support of other diversity efforts, Dr. Npoles gave talks for the NIH Office of Research on Womens Health, University of Puerto Rico Novel Methodologies in Health Disparities Research Training Symposium, the UT Health San Antonio Advancing the Science of Cancer in Latinos Conference, 2020 NIH Course in Clinical and Translational Research Grant Writing and Grantsmanship Course for Clinical Fellows, NIH-Howard University Summer Health Professions Education Program, Resource Centers for Minority Aging Research mentoring webinar, and NIMHD Health Disparities Research Institute. A new training program to promote diversity in translational health disparities research is in the planning stage. The program will prepare Masters level students to pursue a doctoral degree and career in late-stage translational behavioral research to reduce health disparities.