Christian Brothers University Receives $500,000 Grant from The Fogarty International Center of the National Institutes of Health

St. Jude Children's Research Hospital (ALSAC)
Thursday, 7 September 2000

(Memphis, Tennessee, September 7, 2000) — Christian Brothers University (CBU) announced at a press conference today that it has received a $500,000 grant over three years from the Fogarty International Center of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to recruit and train undergraduate minority students for careers in biomedical science and research. The Minority International Research Training (MIRT) grant awarded by the Fogarty International Center supports scientific training programs that offer international research training opportunities to qualified U.S. minority students underrepresented in biomedical research careers. The $500,000 MIRT grant announced today will be a consortium of CBU, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital International Outreach Program, and Tennessee State University (TSU) in Nashville. CBU and TSU will identify and recruit students to participate in the program, and St. Jude will serve as international project site liaison. While students associated with CBU and TSU will have priority for admission, students at other colleges and universities may also participate in the program.

The Fogarty International Center has been a critical component of the NIH international research effort since 1968. The Center's mission is to reduce the global burden of disease. To accomplish this broad objective, the Fogarty International Center advances research and research training that prepares current and future scientists to meet global health challenges. NIH is an agency of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Information about the Fogarty International Center is available on the Center's Web site at http://www.nih.gov/fic.

Gerald T. Keusch, M.D., Director of the Fogarty International Center, said, "The MIRT program provides resources to offer young minority college undergraduates in our country an international research experience that will enrich their science education, expose them to the nature of global health problems, and hopefully motivate them to continue their careers in science and health. Our early experience with MIRT indicates that this is an extraordinarily successful program. We are pleased that a new academic consortium in Tennessee will join the MIRT program."

According to Dr. Raul C. Ribeiro, director of St. Jude International Outreach, the program will expand the humanitarian efforts that St. Jude presently undertakes in 14 countries: "During the first year, student projects will be focused in Brazil, but in subsequent years, additional St. Jude partner countries will be included." Dr. Lynne Jordan Bowers, project coordinator for St. Jude International Outreach, explains some of the training that students will receive: "Students will participate in the real work of our partner clinics in Recife Brazil which are treating children with cancer. Many of the problems they will tackle in these underdeveloped countries are similar to problems associated with health care delivery in rural and minority communities in the U.S."

Phyllis Qualles-Brooks, public relations director for Tennessee State University, discussed TSU's involvement in the project: "TSU is pleased to be part of this consortium with CBU and St. Jude Children's Research Hospital. Dr. Carolyn Caudle, professor of biology at TSU, worked closely with both institutions to obtain this grant and will help recruit young minority students for this science and research program."

Dr. Malinda Fitzgerald, associate professor of biology at CBU, spearheaded the NIH grant proposal and will be the project director: "It's quite a honor for CBU to receive an NIH grant for student research. We're probably the smallest institution and the only private university in the MidSouth to receive this funding and join a prestigious group of colleges and universities, which includes Johns Hopkins School of Nursing, California Polytechnic State University, Howard University, University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, and Texas A&M University.

According to Fitzgerald, "Students participating in this grant project have the advantage of learning valuable research and clinical skills in an international setting. Unlike the modern medical facilities we have in the U.S., our students will experience the challenges and excitement of international sites." Fitzgerald's current students currently conduct research utilizing research facilities within Memphis, such as St. Jude Children's Research Hospital; the University of Memphis; and the University of Tennessee, Memphis where Fitzgerald holds an adjunct position.

Each year of the three-year MIRT project, undergraduate juniors and seniors will participate in seminars and workshops on ethics and research topics, as well as in courses at their colleges and universities. During the summers, students will use these basic skills in an international laboratory to conduct research and to gain insight into basic science laboratory techniques, clinical procedures, and medical record review.

During the first summer (2001), students will be placed at two locations in Brazil. The first site is City University of San Paulo, where they will conduct basic research on the visual system, focusing

on the regulation of ocular blood flow. The second location will be the Central Pediatric, Hematology, and Oncology Unit in Recife where students will implement hand washing policies and basic hygiene techniques to eliminate the spread of infectious diseases. CBU and St. Jude International Outreach program are finalizing sites for the second and third years of the grant.

For more information, contact Dr. Malinda Fitzgerald, associate professor of biology at Christian Brothers University, at (901) 321-3262.

For more information, or to contact St. Jude Children's Research Hospital (ALSAC), see their website at: www.stjude.org