Administrative Core: Houston Area Incubator for Kidney, Urologic, and Hematologic Research Training (HAI-KUH)

Baylor College Of Medicine, Houston TX

Investigators

Abstract

The Houston Area Incubator for Kidney, Urologic, and Hematologic Research Training (HAI-KUH) has grown out of fertile ground: the Texas Medical Center (TMC) situated in the heart of Houston. The TMC is the home of Baylor College of Medicine, including its faculty at Texas Children’s Hospital, University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston (UTHealth), MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston Methodist Research Institute, Rice University, University of Houston, and Texas A&M University Institute of Biosciences and Technology, which have long histories of collaboration. These leading institutions and their multidisciplinary faculty engaged in kidney, urologic, and hematologic (KUH) research have created HAI-KUH, an innovative network to fuel a robust KUH research pipeline. Its broad initiatives for trainees from high school (HS) through nascent junior faculty aim to launch them towards impactful and sustained careers in NIDDK KUH mission areas, whether in academic or private sectors. HAI-KUH’s Training Core (TL1) includes multidisciplinary training preceptors across all KUH areas and HAI-KUH institutions. It supports graduate students and postdoctoral and clinical fellows and provides them with mentored research experiences. The Professional Development Core (PDC) further supports training, including of those engaged in KUH research but not appointed on the TL1, through interactive monthly learning sessions, career tract-specific training, and mentoring pods, and the development of a unique Professional Development Dashboard to facilitate the identification of opportunities to enrich scientific training. The PDC and TL1 also invest in mentor training. The Networking Core (NC) will deliver innovative training on core networking skills and foster the use of these skills through trainee-led virtual platforms to promote interactions among trainees and with the public. In addition, the NC will build a sustainable pipeline of future KUH researchers by creating HAI-KUH-specific tracts within existing STEM outreach and career development programs, which attract HS and undergraduate students across Houston’s highly diverse educational ecosystem. The HAI-KUH Administrative Core (AC) will provide oversight, direction, organization, and evaluation processes to achieve these goals. It will integrate all HAI-KUH components and coordinate activities through a structure of shared governance. Its Executive Committee (EC) will review Core activities, assess progress, identify and rectify barriers to achieving training goals, and advance its integration with the other U2Cs via a national Institutional Network Award meeting. The AC will coordinate HAI-KUH communications and support our initiative to enhance access to HAI-KUH training opportunities and resources. It will provide the necessary administrative support for the TL1-appointed trainees and support crucial NC and PDC activities to ensure the successful implementation of their programs. Critically, it will utilize a robust Program Logic Model and an electronic data portal to allow for comprehensive and regular assessments by its EC and Internal Advisory and External Evaluation Boards to allow for continuous program improvement.