The Fisk-Meharry-Vanderbilt Biomedical Informatics Ecosystem to Support Talented Students in Data Science

The NIH administrative supplement will further the mentorship activities of Fortune Mhlanga, a scientist who has demonstrated a compelling commitment to mentorship in the biomedical sciences. This supplement will be attached to the NLM R25 award, 5 R25 LM014216 02, titled 'The Biomedical Informatics Ecosystem to Support Talented Students in Data Science (BEST-DS2).' This parent award began on September 1, 2023, and ends on August 31, 2028. Fortune Mhlanga is the PI on this R25 award. Our existing NLM R25 program will enhance this supplement, as the infrastructure is already in place, faculty mentors have been selected for the next two years, and we have many academically talented and motivated students prepared to enter the program. Additionally, the program activities and presenters are already planned. This supplement will expand and enhance the NLM R25 award and further the mentoring activities of Fortune Mhlanga by supporting two major activities. First, a mentoring academy for early career faculty members involved in the parent NLM R25 award will be created and conducted by Fortune Mhlanga. Secondly, this supplement will increase the number of students in the parent award’s R25 program and enhance the program's mentoring activities. The specific aims are to: (1) Create and implement a mentoring academy to enhance the NLM R25 faculty mentors’ capability, (2) Increase the existing NLM R25 program by 3 talented students per year for the next two years (a total of 6 additional students), (3) Provide a rigorous evaluation of the activities of this supplement, and (4) Disseminate information, lessons learned, and best practices through conferences, publications, and our university networks, and increase our ties to other programs and universities involved in early career faculty mentoring. The supplement will ensure that the R25 faculty mentors have better skills and training in working with and mentoring talented students. There will be a focus on sustaining the early career faculty mentoring activities and focus of the R25 PI, Fortune Mhlanga. The long-term goal of this administrative supplement is to support and sustain the ongoing and future PI’s efforts in developing new faculty members into great mentors of talented students and academic leaders.