Enhancing Opportunities for Addiction Research in the Merrimack Valley

Project Abstract: Increasing racial and ethnic diversity, equity, and inclusivity within the addiction research community is a priority. Minority serving institutions (MSI) can serve as an important resource in creating such an effective and diverse workforce. The University of Massachusetts Lowell (UML), a public MSI located in Massachusetts’ Merrimack Valley, is uniquely positioned to address this challenge through its proposal Enhancing Opportunities for Addiction Research in the Merrimack Valley. For the past two years, UML has taken advantage of federal funding from the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONC) to develop a regional program for creating “a continuous pipeline of diverse public health informatics and technology professionals.” We now propose to build on this Public Health Informatics and Technology (PHIT) program by creating the PHIT-AR (addiction research) track, with the goal of recruiting motivated undergraduate students and providing them with the data science skills necessary to successfully pursue doctoral training in the field of drug addiction research. To achieve this goal, we have the following four aims: 1) Expand our undergraduate PHIT program with a new focus on applying data sciences to drug addiction research; 2) Recruit a highly diverse and talented student body into this new program; 3) Ensure student success through a supported mentored research experience with diverse partners; and 4) Disseminate knowledge on best practices in creating a diverse and effective drug addiction research workforce with an emphasis on the data sciences. These aims will be achieved through the creation of new undergraduate training opportunities in addiction research and by providing mentored research opportunities with partners including University of Massachusetts Chan Medical School, the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, the Department of Veterans Affairs, and Boston University School of Medicine. Students will be recruited both from UML and from other MSIs in the Merrimack Valley, and they will be supported in their research by an experienced and diverse team with expertise in research, addiction sciences, data sciences, and undergraduate education. Through this program, we expect that students will gain the research skills necessary to further their academic training in a research-intensive doctoral program and eventually gain the full array of tools needed to improve health in communities similar to those from which they come from.