# The Investigator Development Core of SDSU HealthLINK Center for Transdisciplinary Health Disparities Research

> **NIH NIH U54** · SAN DIEGO STATE UNIVERSITY · 2021 · $362,893

## Abstract

INVESTIGATOR DEVELOPMENT CORE – Project Summary
The SDSU HealthLINK Center for Transdisciplinary Health Disparities Research (Center) Investigator
Development Core (IDC) will directly contribute to a sustainable infrastructure for minority health and health
disparities (MHHD) research at SDSU by providing career development and funding opportunities for junior
investigators to develop both independent and collaborative research agendas and become future leaders in
MHHD research. Our career enhancement model will allow junior investigators to leverage the expertise of
senior mentors to generate new knowledge that will further enhance shared resources in the Research
Infrastructure Core's Health Data Analytic Portal and Health Science Knowledge Repository. The IDC
activities will also build capacity in partner organizations through the Community Engagement Core. IDC junior
investigators and their senior mentors will collaborate with other Center Cores and Research Projects to create
a diverse community of basic biomedical, behavioral, and clinical researchers working toward the common
goal of reducing health disparities and optimizing health care outcomes for all people regardless of
race/ethnicity, sexual and gender identity, or socioeconomic status. The critical gap that the IDC will fill is the
limited pilot project funding for junior investigators at SDSU. Thus, the primary aim of the IDC is to fund four
pilot projects every year in Years 1-5 to support the career advancement of junior investigators at SDSU.
Following a systematic process to solicit and review applications, we will fund one pilot project each year in
each of the following three areas: basic biomedical, behavioral, and clinical research. In addition, we will fund
a fourth project developed in collaboration with the Center's Community Engagement Core partner
organizations. Both the IDC and the Center's Administrative Core will support the IDC awardees' career
advancement through additional senior mentorship and career enhancement opportunities. The Research
Infrastructure Core will promote IDC awardees' pilot project completion by providing access to and training on
shared resources, followed by integration of pilot project data and products into the Health Data Analytic Portal
and Health Science Knowledge Repository. The Community Engagement Core will further support IDC
awardees by connecting them with potential community partners for research, and training awardees on
innovative methods for disseminating their findings. Finally, the IDC will work with the Research Projects to
identify research questions that can enhance or use data from existing Research Projects, thereby promoting
bidirectional learning. Finally, the IDC will contribute to the Center's development by providing critical feedback
on the Center's evaluation, and fostering a transdisciplinary, team science approach. It is clear that the IDC will
meet a significant need in furthering the careers of SDSU junior inv...

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10167775
- **Project number:** 5U54MD012397-04
- **Recipient organization:** SAN DIEGO STATE UNIVERSITY
- **Principal Investigator:** JOHN P. ELDER
- **Activity code:** U54 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2021
- **Award amount:** $362,893
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2018-09-11 → 2023-05-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10167775

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10167775, The Investigator Development Core of SDSU HealthLINK Center for Transdisciplinary Health Disparities Research (5U54MD012397-04). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-22 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10167775. Licensed CC0.

---

*[NIH grants dataset](/datasets/nih-grants) · CC0 1.0*