# Strategic Academic Research Training Core (START)

> **NIH NIH U54** · PONCE SCHOOL OF MEDICINE · 2020 · $297,193

## Abstract

PROJECT SUMMARY
The need for a diverse workforce in addressing minority health and health disparities requires a national effort
to address. Diversity among the workforce can come from cultural and racial background, socioeconomic status
and the unique nature of the university size, scope of research and investigator profile. While not detracting from
the impact of the research done at the traditional research powerhouses across the US, smaller schools and
those serving a predominantly underrepresented population play a uniquely valuable role in training a diverse
workforce. Ponce Health Sciences University is fairly small university in southern Puerto Rico offering MD, MS,
PhD, and DrPH in medicine, biomedical sciences, psychology and public health to a predominantly hispanic
population of students. Our faculty are immersed in the local and national Puerto Rican communities and have
the cultural competence, language skills and trust to address health disparities broadly and also specifically
among Puerto Ricans and other Hispanics. We propose an investigator development core to provide STrategic
Academic Research Training (START) for our junior faculty Scholars to enhance the diversity they bring to the
scientific workforce. The START core is based on the hypothesis that if we provide strategic training and team
mentoring to individual Scholars, they will more quickly achieve independent funding and career advancement.
Three aims are proposed to (1) implement targeted training in areas of need identified in our faculty in the School
of Medicine, School of Brain and Behavioral Sciences, and Public Health Program; (2) match scholars with a
team of mentors to cover scientific and career expertise needs; and (3) provide for rigorous reviews and selection
of projects for pilot funding to develop data and publications to support successful acquisition of independent,
extramural research funding in minority health and health disparities. The scope and needs among our faculty
that START will address are well defined by PHSU prior experiences with pilot funding and junior investigator
development (thus based on practical experience and targeted to our faculty). START goals are to develop our
Scholars into funded (grants), productive researchers (publications, scientists trained) working in health
disparities and to support their academic career development (promotion) and to do so while fostering the unique
backgrounds and approaches among diverse scientists with career trajectories that are distinct from the
traditional model common at elite research universities. This unique training, cultural competence and diverse
community trust are all essential components to deriving creative and impactful research solutions to address
persistent disparities in minority health and healthcare outcomes.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 9967112
- **Project number:** 5U54MD007579-35
- **Recipient organization:** PONCE SCHOOL OF MEDICINE
- **Principal Investigator:** Richard J. Noel
- **Activity code:** U54 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2020
- **Award amount:** $297,193
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** — → —

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/9967112

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 9967112, Strategic Academic Research Training Core (START) (5U54MD007579-35). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-23 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/9967112. Licensed CC0.

---

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