# University of Maryland First Program

> **NIH NIH U54** · UNIVERSITY OF MARYLAND BALTIMORE · 2022 · $70,373

## Abstract

SPECIFIC AIMS
African American/Black, Hispanic/Latinx, American Indian, and Alaska Native individuals make up 34% of the
population, however they are underrepresented in the biomedical sciences. Underrepresented minorities (URM)
make up 15% of PhD graduates and representation further along the pipeline in academia shows further attrition
with URMs comprising only 9% of Assistant Professor and 4% of tenured faculty positions. Lastly, URM scientists
receive only 6% of NIH research grants which are a necessity for establishing and maintaining a successful
research career. The inability to maintain a diverse pool of faculty who conduct biomedical and health related
research has wide spread implications. Increasing representation within research institutions will allow academic
medicine to meet the needs of a diverse nation and address persistent health inequities and disparities, such as
those illustrated by the COVID-19 pandemic. To address the critical gap of underrepresentation, institutional
strategies must establish equitable and inclusive recruitment and faculty development that directly address
existing barriers to this population.
The University of Maryland School of Medicine (UMSOM) and the University of Maryland Baltimore County
(UMBC) have longstanding individual and collaborative efforts to increase diversity, equity, and inclusion in the
biomedical sciences, with programs supporting trainees from middle school to graduate and medical school
training. Collectively UMSOM & UMBC pipeline programs and partnerships stemming from these programs have
increased the recruitment of UR students and enhanced trainee diversity at all levels; however, recruitment and
retention of faculty from underrepresented groups signifies a key gap in this trajectory. Currently, at UMSOM
and UMBC URMs make up only 5.3% and 12% of total tenure track faculty, respectively.
URM in the biomedical sciences have expressed low representation leads to social and professional isolation.
Lack of critical mass of minority faculty, coordinated programs and resources to support retention and promotion,
and senior leader who serve as diversity champions have been identified as key barriers to the recruitment,
retention, and promotion of URM faculty. To address existing barriers to URM faculty retention and promotion
we will build off prior experience from UMBC’s nationally renowned Meyerhoff Scholars Program. The success
of students within the Meyerhoff Scholars Program has been attributed to addressing 4 critical factors: academic
and social integration, knowledge and skill development, support and motivation, and monitoring and advising.
The overall goal of the faculty development core is to transform our faculty development approach
through adaptation of the Meyerhoff model using coordinated programs and resources to: 1) support
the development, retention, and promotion of URM faculty, 2) create a network of senior leaders who
serve as diversity champions to sustain inclusio...

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10494946
- **Project number:** 1U54CA272205-01
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF MARYLAND BALTIMORE
- **Principal Investigator:** Marey R. Shriver
- **Activity code:** U54 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2022
- **Award amount:** $70,373
- **Award type:** 1
- **Project period:** 2022-09-09 → 2027-08-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10494946

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10494946, University of Maryland First Program (1U54CA272205-01). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-24 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10494946. Licensed CC0.

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