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115 Strategies for Training and Advancing under-represented Researchers (STARs)

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  03 April 2024

Laura P. James
Affiliation:
University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences
Crystal Sparks
Affiliation:
University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences
Paul Duguid
Affiliation:
University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences
Jessica Snowden
Affiliation:
University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences
Mario Schootman
Affiliation:
University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences
Brian Gittens
Affiliation:
University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences
Beatrice Boateng
Affiliation:
University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences
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Abstract

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OBJECTIVES/GOALS: Minority faculty have inequitable access to information, professional development, and research resources. A structured research-mentoring program could help strengthen the research acumen of underrepresented (UR) faculty, provide a community, and support to ensure their success in becoming independent investigators. METHODS/STUDY POPULATION: The Translational Research Institute (TRI) STARs program aims to build a peer support community of UR in biomedical, clinical, behavioral and social sciences to support career development and research success. The program provides a structured peer support group with a 3-month grant training and development program and addresses issues of isolation often felt by UR faculty in academic settings. It encourages the development of innovative research ideas in a safe environment. This peer support group can also help improve confidence and self-efficacy in clinical and translational research development and execution by UR faculty. At the didactic program’s conclusion and seed grant application submission, STARs provides $10,000 as a TRI DEI Equity, Diversity, and Grantsmanship Expertise project. RESULTS/ANTICIPATED RESULTS: Since its launch in 2021, 11 scholars have enrolled in the program;three have fully completed the program, and all three have received subsequent grant funding. Four scholars have completed the didactic program and are in the process of using seed funding to collect initial data and working on initial publications. The remaining scholars are currently in the didactic program. Initial scholar satisfaction with the program is high: 100% reported satisfaction with their participation (Very Satisfied/Satisfied), and 100% agree the program provides adequate support to their research project (Strongly Agree/Agree). Overall, scholars reported an average increase in confidence of 7.9% in grantsmanship skills (Scale 0-10). The return on investment is 3106%, with over $1.9 million in subsequent funding. DISCUSSION/SIGNIFICANCE: Research shows diverse teams working together, capitalizing on innovative ideas, and distinct perspectives outperform homogenous teams. Our preliminary experience demonstrates success for the model. Additional, long-term support will be furthered developed to address additional challenges experienced by UR faculty across their careers.

Type
Education, Career Development and Workforce Development
Creative Commons
Creative Common License - CCCreative Common License - BYCreative Common License - NCCreative Common License - ND
This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives licence (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/), which permits non-commercial re-use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is unaltered and is properly cited. The written permission of Cambridge University Press must be obtained for commercial re-use or in order to create a derivative work.
Copyright
© The Author(s), 2024. The Association for Clinical and Translational Science