ANNOUNCING THE PRESIDENTIAL M1 MENTORSHIP AWARD PROGRAM

OVERVIEW

The Cato T. Laurencin Institute for Regenerative Engineering and the Office of the Provost are pleased to announce a Call for Applications for the Presidential M1 Mentorship Award Program. The program has as its intent to create a national model for best practices in mentorship and formalize mentorship as an academic discipline. The Presidential M1 Mentorship Award Program aims to establish a cadre of accomplished UConn faculty who will deliver mentorship to racial and ethnic underrepresented individuals along the biomedical science pipeline.

Award recipients will utilize program funds in support of efforts encompassing recruitment and mentorship of racial and ethnic underrepresented trainees at all stages of the pipeline from middle, high school, undergraduate, and graduate students to junior faculty. Awardees will also publish outcome results and experiences in scholarly journals and electronic media, attend national mentorship conferences, and convene in a bi-annual symposium.

FUNDING

Presidential M1 Mentorship Award Program funding will cover up to 25% of protected time for mentoring activities, including mentorship of individual students as well as participation in the development and execution of various mentorship initiatives. In addition, up to $5,000 will be allocated to the development of new and innovative initiatives focused on student-related activities that promote their academic growth and increase the number of students in the pipeline.

Award recipients are required to attend at least one national mentorship conference per year and to participate in further training in the mentoring racial and ethnic underrepresented students. Renewal of the award is subject to an annual program performance review and availability of funding.

ELIGIBILITY

• Full-time UConn faculty, including UConn Health, UConn Storrs, and Regional campuses;
• Documented history of successful research funding (National Institutes of Health (NIH) or other sources); and
• Evidence of extensive mentoring experience.

SELECTION CRITERIA

• Previous success in securing research funding;
• Caliber of previous mentoring experience;
• Merit and alignment of proposed mentoring activities and initiatives; and
• Quality and innovation of proposed recruitment efforts to engage, increase, and retain underrepresented students and faculty in the biomedical sciences.

APPLICATION & IMPORTANT DATES

To apply, complete the online application providing the following:

• NIH Biographical Sketch
• Letter of Support from Department Chair
• M1 Mentorship Proposal

Deadline to submit application is Friday May 26, 2023

Notice of Awards – June 2023

For further information, please contact Jolene Monahan Wilding, Program Manager, at monahanwilding@uchc.edu.