# Administrative Core

> **NIH NIH U54** · VANDERBILT UNIVERSITY MEDICAL CENTER · 2024 · $5,010,826

## Abstract

PROJECT SUMMARY
Addressing the longstanding lack of diversity among scientific faculty requires sustainable systemic and
institutional change. The Administrative Core of the Vanderbilt Faculty Institutional Recruitment for Sustainable
Transformation Program (V-FIRST) will: 1) provide the organizational structure for the cluster hiring of 18-20
tenure-track, early-career scientific faculty who are Black, Latinx, American Indian, and Pacific Islander; 2) serve
as V-FIRST's operational home – manage fiscal activities, support cross-core initiatives, and effectively
communicate with internal and external stakeholders; and 3) facilitate the transfer of knowledge and lessons
learned into institution-wide changes in policies and practices. These activities will be vital to V-FIRST's
overarching goal – transforming Vanderbilt into an institution with a thriving, racially diverse scientific faculty,
and a sustainable institutional culture of inclusive excellence.
The Administrative Core will leverage institutional expertise in building diverse collaborative teams; recruiting
and retaining scientific faculty from minoritized racial and ethnic groups; developing successful diversity, equity
and inclusion initiatives and change management experience. Grounded in principles of equity, transparent
communication, institutional accountability, efficient use of financial and human resources, and a commitment to
data-driven approaches, the Administrative Core will accomplish the following:
Administrative Aim 1: Implement a highly efficient organizational structure that serves as V-FIRST's
operational home and enables V-FIRST to transform Vanderbilt into an institution with a thriving, racially
diverse scientific faculty, and a sustainable institutional culture of inclusive excellence. The
Administrative Core will establish the governance, secure technical and human resources needed to operate V-
FIRST, manage fiscal resources, support cross-core integration, and effectively communicate with stakeholders.
Administrative Aim 2: Recruit, hire and retain a racially diverse cohort of early career, tenure track
scientific faculty and provide tools, resources, and support to facilitate scientific productivity and
achieve promotion. To hire 18-20 tenure-track, early-career scientific faculty who are Black, Latinx, American
Indian, and Pacific Islander, the Administrative Core will implement three rounds of cluster hiring using innovative
search and recruitment strategies and will facilitate the appointment of faculty with equitable startup packages.
Administrative Aim 3: Use evidence generated by V-FIRST and the broader FIRST Consortium to
facilitate institution-wide changes in policies and practices to foster sustainable culture change and
inclusive excellence. The Administrative Core will facilitate the transfer of knowledge and lessons learned into
new policies and practices that support inclusive hiring, equitable promotion, and a culture and climate of
belonging. Adm...

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10852926
- **Project number:** 5U54CA280915-02
- **Recipient organization:** VANDERBILT UNIVERSITY MEDICAL CENTER
- **Principal Investigator:** CONSUELO HOPKINS WILKINS
- **Activity code:** U54 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2024
- **Award amount:** $5,010,826
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2023-06-01 → 2025-03-21

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10852926

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10852926, Administrative Core (5U54CA280915-02). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-23 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10852926. Licensed CC0.

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