# RCMI Investigator Development Core

> **NIH NIH U54** · UNIVERSITY OF HOUSTON · 2024 · $386,241

## Abstract

The success of the scientific community’s ongoing efforts to enhance health outcomes for depends greatly on 
our investment in inspiring and developing a new generation of scientists who work creatively on these 
important, complex public health problems over the coming years. Accordingly, we propose to establish an 
Investigator Development Core (IDC) that will enhance the scientific impact of this newly proposed Research 
Centers in Minority Institutions (RCMI) at the University of Houston (UH) by identifying and providing 
opportunities, support, and mentoring for the next generation of scientists to pursue bold and groundbreaking 
research addressing disparities in addictions and cancer prevention. The IDC’s primary feature is a Pilot Grant 
Program that will fund 3-5 seed awards annually to support innovative projects addressing disparities in 
addictions and cancer prevention. We will actively solicit applications on these critical scientific topics from the 
UH academic community, encouraging and mentoring early-stage and new investigators to participate in this 
program. The IDC has a rigorous shaping, evaluation, review, and funding process that will ensure the pilot 
grants comply with Federal requirements and help postdoctoral fellows and assistant professors leverage 
these resources to support their emerging programs of research in health disparity science. To that end, pilot 
applicants. The long-term goal of the IDC is to leverage innovative pilot grants and hands-on mentorship that 
support opportunities for postdoctoral fellows and assistant professors to secure career awards or 
developmentally appropriate research grants that facilitate their pathway towards independence. The IDC will 
facilitate and enhance the innovation of the RCMI by serving as a unique research resource in the region that 
will enhance local and national workforce development in health disparity science.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10845597
- **Project number:** 5U54MD015946-05
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF HOUSTON
- **Principal Investigator:** Olivera Nesic-Taylor
- **Activity code:** U54 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2024
- **Award amount:** $386,241
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2020-09-08 → 2026-10-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10845597

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10845597, RCMI Investigator Development Core (5U54MD015946-05). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-26 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10845597. Licensed CC0.

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