The David White Research Award to a Meritorious Established Investigator

Background

The national prestige of a veterinary college is related to the quality of its research program. A distinguished research program influences the quality of patient care, veterinary education, veterinary professional and graduate students, residents, and faculty. It is therefore in the best interest of the college to support the faculty in organized research and to foster high-impact research projects that create or confirm new knowledge and methods for diagnosis, treatment, and prevention. There are a number of other support mechanisms to help faculty to initiate research projects and to achieve research funding. Established investigators, however, are often left to depend on their own means to success.

Goals

The goal of the David White Research Award is to honor and support established and prevailing investigators and to establish a research apprenticeship that feeds on the success of the honored and successful investigator.

Objectives

There are three objectives combined here for maximum impact on the overall college research program:

1. to honor a successful researcher for documented achievements in establishing a funded research program,
2. to provide a full time postdoctoral researcher position to an aspiring young investigator who has completed his or her education and training (DVM, PhD, and residency, if applicable); the postdoctoral researcher while working under the supervision and in support of the honored investigator will develop into a high caliber independent academic faculty investigator,
3. to foster mentoring and collaboration between an established investigator and a junior researcher.

Selection criteria & method of approach

1. Candidates for this award must be a tenured faculty member with a well established, externally funded research program within the College of Veterinary Medicine. The degree of establishment may be judged by criteria such as the number of external grants, the success with follow-up funding, the length of the overall funding period, the quality of publications, and other measurable outcomes resulting from the funded research program, as well as demonstrated mentoring capabilities.
2. The selected honoree receives an award consisting of a citation and concomitant salary and benefits support for a postdoctoral researcher to join the honoree's research program for a period not longer than three years. If the appointed postdoctoral researcher leaves the research program earlier, the remaining funds are to be returned and become available for a new award selection.
3. Post-doctoral researcher candidates (college internal or external) shall be suggested by the honoree for approval by the Associate Dean for Research and Graduate Studies.
4. The salary and benefit support will be derived from the income of the Charles C. Palmer Fund.
5. The award amount shall be determined annually by the Associate Dean for Research and Graduate Studies (only on the available income of the Fund).
6. The award shall be used toward salary and benefits of the postdoctoral researcher.
7. Availability of the award will be announced by the Office of Research and Graduate Studies.
8. Award candidates (nominations and/or applications) are reviewed by the Council for Research. The Council may use external reviewers. No more than two candidates may be recommended to the Associate Dean for Research and Graduate Studies for review and consideration for approval.
9. Sitting members of the Council for Research are eligible for the award but may not participate in the selection process when they enter the pool of candidates.
10. An award, if approved, shall be announced at the College's Oath and Hooding ceremony.
11. The award can be won repeatedly but not successively by the same faculty member.

Significance

This award has been designed to honor a successful principal investigator based in the College of Veterinary Medicine and shall reward demonstrated success. The award shall provide funds for hiring a postdoctoral researcher to work with the honored award winner. This award also provides the opportunity to a young aspiring clinical or research scientist to prepare for an academic veterinary faculty career by taking up apprenticeship with a successful principal investigator, by learning and practicing the art of grant writing, the day-to-day research tasks, and advising graduate students in their pursuit of research.

While the postdoctoral researcher is to sustain the research routine, his/her preceptor, the principal investigator, is freed up to maintain or even increase the research program. The award is given approximately every one to three years with the aim of increasing the pool of highly qualified candidates for future academic faculty positions in veterinary schools. This award is intended to foster mentorship and collaboration between established and young aspiring researchers.

2008 Submission Deadline

The original plus 9 copies must be received in the CVM Office of Research and Graduate Studies (Michele Morscher, 127L VMAB) by 5:00 pm, July 15, 2008. Download the David White Award Application .

Past Recipients

• 1998  Dr. Michael Lairmore
• 2001  Dr. Thomas Rosol
• 2004  Dr. Yasuko Rikihisa