Underrepresented – Forge AHEAD Center

Four new research projects to expand reach of Forge AHEAD Center

The Forge AHEAD (Advancing Health Equity Across the Deep South) Center has received a new award, totaling over $4.5million, to fund four new research projects aimed to expand the reach of the center’s mission.

Forge AHEAD Center, a regional comprehensive research center, is making significant strides in the battle against cardiometabolic diseases in the Deep South. Focused on the prevention and management of health disparities associated with obesity, diabetes, and hypertension (HTN), Forge AHEAD Center spans the states of Alabama, Mississippi, and Louisiana. Supported by a grant from the National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities (NIMHD) and a key player in the Health Equity Action Network, the center’s vision is clear: achieve health equity by eliminating disparities and improving health outcomes.

In the Deep South, where rates of obesity, diabetes, and hypertension are the highest in the nation, Forge AHEAD Center is addressing a critical need. Life expectancy in the region, particularly for Black Americans, lags significantly behind other areas. Forge AHEAD Center recognizes the urgent need for intervention on multiple levels, encompassing research, training, outreach, and education. The goal is the elimination of health disparities and the realization of health equity for all.

“This new funding supports an exciting advancement of the mission of Forge AHEAD Center to address health equity in cardiometabolic disease across the South,” says Andrea Cherrington, M.D., professor in the Division of Preventive Medicine in the Department of Medicine, and the contact primary investigator for Forge AHEAD Center.

“These additional Forge AHEAD Center projects invest in four new investigators conducting interventions focused on cardiometabolic disease prevention and management that apply novel intervention approaches not addressed by the Center’s current projects.”

The following research projects aim to support the center through this new grant:

Project 1
Title: Teen Mom Study: A Hybrid Cluster Randomized Trial
Abigail Gamble, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor
University of Mississippi Medical Center

Project 2
Title: Remotely Delivered Resistance Training for Cardiometabolic Health among Black Women: A Pilot Trial
Amber W. Kinsey, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor
UAB Heersink School of Medicine –Department of Medicine, Division of Preventive Medicine

Project 3
Title: Remotely-delivered Mindfulness-Based Diabetes Education for rural adults with uncontrolled diabetes and elevated distress
Caroline Presley, M.D.
Assistant Professor
UAB Heersink School of Medicine –Department of Medicine, Division of Preventive Medicine

Project 4
Title: Weight-focused vs. weight-neutral adaptive biobehavioral strategies for improving metabolic health in Black adults with Stage 1 Obesity: A pilot Sequential Multiple Assignment Randomized Trial
Drew Sayer, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor
UAB Department of Family and Community Medicine

Forge AHEAD HIV-Focused Pilot RFA

The Forge AHEAD (Advancing Health Equity Across the Deep South) Center is pleased to announce a new HIV-focused request for applications for its Pilot and Feasibility Scholars Program. Funding for this special emphasis round is available for up to 3 pilot awards (up to $50,000 each for 1 year) focused specifically on health equity issues related to HIV and cardiometabolic disease, ranging from prevention efforts to projects involving people living with HIV. This program will provide seed support for research projects focused on stakeholder-engaged intervention development, clinical outcomes, implementation and dissemination (T3) and outcomes and effectiveness in populations (T4). Letters of intent are due October 25, 2023, and detailed instructions can be found in the RFA document. Please reach out to Dr. Trudi Horton at trudihorton@uabmc.edu if you have questions or would like additional information.

LAUNCHED is Recruiting Underrepresented Minority Scientists

Now Recruiting Underrepresented Minority Scientists: LAUNCHED

(The Louisiana Center for Advancing Underrepresented Scientists Careers in Health, Nutrition, Obesity, and Disparities Research)

The Louisiana Center for Advancing Underrepresented Scientists Careers in Health, Nutrition, Obesity, and Disparities Research (LAUNCHED) is a comprehensive program designed to provide mentorship, training, and career development opportunities for underrepresented minority (URM) scientists in nutrition, obesity, diabetes, and related research. LAUNCHED is a highly innovative training program with the long-term goal of increasing the success rate of underrepresented ethnic minority scientists competing for federal research funding in the fields of nutrition, obesity, and diabetes. Located in the Deep South, LAUNCHED is focusing on providing training to scientists in Louisiana and neighboring states. A diverse workforce is important to academic productivity. However, there are several groups of scientists, including racial and ethnic minority groups, who are currently underrepresented in academia. This underrepresentation has a direct effect on scientific research in general, but especially within health disparities research, including studies related to nutrition, obesity, and/or diabetes. The goal of LAUNCHED is to increase the success rate of URM scientists being awarded federal research funding, particularly in areas relevant to the National Institute for Diabetes, Digestive, and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK). The LAUNCHED program is funded by the NIDDK and is a collaboration among several institutions, including Pennington Biomedical Research Center, Southern University, Louisiana State University (LSU) A&M, Xavier University of Louisiana, Tulane University, and LSU Health Sciences Center New Orleans (LSUHSC-NO).

We are looking for early career scientists (post-doctoral fellows and early career faculty) from institutions in Louisiana and neighboring states with an interest in diabetes, nutrition, and/or obesity research from underrepresented racial and ethnic minority groups. Applicants must have a PhD or MD equivalent degree and there is no citizenship requirement. Additional information can also be found on our website at www.launchedprogram.org. Should you have any questions at this time, please feel free to contact us at launched@pbrc.edu. We are very excited to give deserving applicants the opportunities that LAUNCHED has to offer!

Apply here today.