Continued Career Development After Fellowship
Fellows with strong interest and promise for research-oriented careers are offered two mechanisms of research support: through the Procter Scholar Program or multiple NIH T32 grants.
During the third year of fellowship we allow our fellows to be junior attendings in the allergy / immunology clinics. For fellows who are continuing an academic career, funding can be provided from our institution through the Procter Scholar Program and multiple NIH T32 grants, as detailed below.
Fellows with strong interest and promise for research-oriented careers are offered two mechanisms of research support. First, an active NIH funded T32 grant from the National Institute of Child Health and Disease (PI Thomas Boat, Co-PI Alan Jobe, HD-07541) offers four positions to support third and fourth year fellows for a period of two years. Second, Cincinnati Children's has a Procter Scholar Program that has been in place for more than 15 years at the medical center; this provides support for one year of faculty (Research Instructor position). Salary support for nearly full-time (>90% protected time) laboratory experience in basic science laboratories is provided. The grant places exceptional trainees in outstanding basic science laboratories within The Children's Hospital Research Foundation (TCHRF). More than 30 trainees have completed this program and many have established independent pediatric research careers. This program is fully supported by TCHRF and represents the continued and strong commitment of our Research Board for pediatric training and the development of academic pediatricians. Junior faculty in our division have benefited from the Procter Scholar Program including Dr. Michael Daines.
Children's Health Research Career Development Award(CHRCDA)
This program was first funded by the NIH in 1991. Dr. Rothenberg is the Program Director. Thirty-two junior investigators have been supported, usually for two years. Excluding recently awarded scholars, 75% have developed substantial external funding and are engaged in productive scholarly work. This has been an exceptional program for our institution, providing a mechanism for faculty development at a critical time in their careers during which they must establish independent academic pathways. This program has consisted primarily of one-on-one mentorship with established investigators, who help with research planning, grant writing, laboratory facilities and technology, and program development. Laboratory and clinical research development is enhanced by financial support for their laboratory, this latter element comprising most of the CHRCDA budget. Currently, two of our faculty, Pablo Abonia, MD and Kimberly Risma, MD, PhD, are funded by the CHRCDA.
