# Emory University BIRCWH Program

> **NIH NIH K12** · EMORY UNIVERSITY · 2022 · $404,186

## Abstract

The Emory BIRCWH Program is a multidisciplinary education program designed to provide career
development training and support for outstanding junior faculty interested in innovative and high impact
women's health research. In the initial project period, our program plan was focused on building a sustainable
BIRCWH-specific career development infrastructure with the following components: a) A diverse and cohesive
leadership structure; b) An effective approach for identifying and recruiting a diverse cohort of promising junior
faculty with interest in developing a career in women's health research; c) A women's health tailored didactic
research training program that leverages existing infrastructure to maximize economy of scale; and d) A
mentoring career development program that is adapted to the needs of the individual Scholar.
Applying these metrics, the Emory BIRCWH has made significant contributions to the Office of Research in
Women's Health's mission to promote women's health research and the science of sex differences. Our
training plan is firmly tethered to relevant institutional programs including Emory University Laney Graduate
School's Master of Science in Clinical Research program. We attracted some of the best and brightest cadre of
junior faculty who have leveraged the BIRCWH support to advance their careers, receiving NIH funding in
excess of $16 M as PIs, and publishing 86 peer-reviewed papers during their training in the BIRCWH.
We therefore look forward with great enthusiasm to the next project period. It will take the Emory BIRCWH to a
new level of enhanced impact through consolidation of successful program activities, and piloting of new
initiatives and best practices aimed at further enriching the training experience for our Scholars and facilitating
their transition into research independence. We propose the following specific aims: a) Expand our program
administrative structure to meet the growing needs of the Emory BIRCWH, and leverage this expansion as a
tool for practical leadership skill development for the next generation of BIRCWH and women's health
leaders; b) Continue to leverage and partner with available institutional infrastructure for individualized
didactic research training in research fundamentals and methodology to advance women's health research
and the science of sex/gender differences; c) Refine our multidisciplinary mentored career development
program by adding community mentors to broaden the impact of scholars' research; and d) Enhance and
continue to the implementation of our successful campus-wide approach for identifying and recruiting a
diverse cohort of promising candidates.
The Emory BIRCWH enjoys the support of the University community from the grassroots to the top leadership.
The Emory BIRCWH will receive direct institutional dollars of $625,000 over the next 5 years in addition to
substantial in-kind support during the next funding cycle.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10424533
- **Project number:** 5K12HD085850-08
- **Recipient organization:** EMORY UNIVERSITY
- **Principal Investigator:** Ighovwerha Ofotokun
- **Activity code:** K12 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2022
- **Award amount:** $404,186
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2015-09-18 → 2025-04-30

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10424533

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10424533, Emory University BIRCWH Program (5K12HD085850-08). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-24 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10424533. Licensed CC0.

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