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The group comprises six institutions with a track record of training researchers underrepresented in the biomedical workforce that will benefit from the academy’s training and technical assistance.
RESEARCH TRIANGLE PARK, N.C. — RTI International, a nonprofit research institute, has selected six institutions with a track record of training researchers underrepresented in the biomedical workforce to serve as the third group of Institutional Champions for the All of Us Researcher Academy. As part of the National Institutes of Health’s (NIH) All of Us Research Program, the academy provides capacity building, training, technical assistance and peer-to-peer learning for health and social science researchers using the All of Us Researcher Workbench.
The third group includes Florida Atlantic University, Florida International University, Northern Arizona University, San Jose State University, University of Nevada, Las Vegas, and University of Puerto Rico Medical Sciences Campus.
“It is gratifying and exciting to continue expanding our network of Institutional Champions with this third group,” said Dr. Sula Hood, a senior research scientist at RTI who co-leads the academy with Dr. Brian Southwell. “Partnering with these institutions is an important step as we strive to support researchers, including those from groups that have been historically underrepresented in the biomedical workforce.”
Awards totaling $450,000 across institutions will be dispersed to support faculty and student use of the All of Us Researcher Workbench, the cloud-based platform where researchers can access the All of Us dataset. Each institution will support researchers for a year and can welcome visiting students and faculty from other eligible institutions to participate in activities that increase capacity to analyze the All of Us dataset.
In 2020, RTI received a five-year award from NIH to participate in a national consortium of organizations supporting the NIH’s All of Us Research Program. The mission of All of Us is to accelerate health research and medical breakthroughs, enabling individualized prevention, treatment, and care for all. To make this possible, All of Us is building one of the largest, most diverse health databases of its kind, engaging at least one million research participants who reflect the diversity of the U.S., particularly from communities historically underrepresented in biomedical research. Data gathered from participants will help drive innovation in health care and help scientists understand how genes, health practices and environmental exposures can impact health and illness.
RTI leads the All of Us Researcher Academy in collaboration with the All of Us Research Program’s Division of Engagement and Outreach. The division partners with community organizations nationwide to foster relationships with participants, researchers, and health care providers. The academy and other researcher engagement activities are central to building a diverse community of researchers. There are now more than 8,150+ All of Us researchers from all career stages, institution types, backgrounds, and experiences.
RTI’s partner in developing this stage of the All of Us Researcher Academy is Community-Campus Partnerships for Health.
In 2022, RTI announced the initial group of Institutional Champions, followed by a second group in spring 2023.
The All of Us Researcher Academy is supported by the Division of Engagement and Outreach, All of Us Research Program, National Institutes of Health, Award Number 1OT20D028395-01. All of Us and the All of Us logo are registered service marks of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
Learn more about the All of Us Researcher Workbench
