Administrative Core

PROJECT SUMMARY: ADMINISTRATIVE CORE OF BARC The Administrative Core of the Balance and Auditory Research Center has identified three specific aims: (1) establish and maintain an effective organizational and governance structure to support state-of-the-art technology initiatives essential for BARC investigators to apply cutting-edge molecular, structural, and neurophysiological approaches to address important questions related to balance and auditory disorders; (2) promote a research environment that is creative, collaborative, and multidisciplinary by providing education, supportive mentoring, and research funding for research project and pilot project investigators pursuing balance and auditory-related research; and (3) identify and implement long-term strategies to maximize sustainability of the BARC by recruiting new faculty and fostering important interactions with other IDeA programs. BARC will be directed by Wu Zhou, PhD, who will be counseled in his work by an Advisory Committee and an Executive Committee. The Advisory Committee will consist of Gene L. Bidwell, PhD, Associate Vice Chancellor for Research and the University of Mississippi Medical Center (UMMC), John E. Hall, PhD, Professor and Chair at UMMC and Director of a Phase III COBRE, and three additional members from outside UMMC. The Executive Committee will consist of Christopher Spankovich, AuD, PhD, MPH, BARC’s Associate Director, and the directors and associate director of BARC’s two research cores. The Administrative Core, which consists of the BARC Director, Associate Director, and a Project Manager, will oversee BARC’s education and training programs, mentoring programs, and pilot project programs as well as faculty recruitment and its three research projects. An independent evaluator will work with BARC personnel and stakeholders and provide formal reports to the Executive Committee each quarter.