Center for Studies in Demography and Ecology

In a new study by CSDE Affiliates Elena Erosheva, Carole Lee and Statistics PhD student Sheridan Grant, the team has found significant Black-White difference in NIH Grant Award Outcomes. The team’s NIH R01 project has yielded several publications. Most recently, in their study, which sampled from over 54,000 R01 applications submitted between 2014-2016 by Black and White investigators, they assessed whether investigator race explains any part of the criterion scoring differences in the review process and how criterion scores are combined to produce the final review score. They used an exact matching approach to arrive at balanced samples and then a multilevel modeling analyses to evaluate outcomes. They find that funding award decisions for Black scientists is 55% lower than that for white scientists. They also find that an important explanation for gaps in final review scores is due to the preliminary criterion scoring where the Black-white gaps are high across all criteria. For more about the study, read the article published in Advances in Science in June 2020. Building on their findings, they have published an opinion letter in the Correspondence section of The Lancet to explain how even alternative approaches to funding grants might perpetuate racial disparities due to inequalities prior to or early on in the grant review process.

PAA Webinar: Navigating the Job Market During COVID-19

CSDE Trainee Spotlight: Maxine Wright

How does neighborhood change influence an individual’s wellbeing? What does this mean for their mental health? How do processes of urban displacement complicate our understanding of the neighborhood effects health framework? These are the types of questions that CSDE Trainee Maxine K. Wright aims to explore.

Maxine received her B.A. in Philosophy, Neuroscience, and Psychology, an interdisciplinary program at Washington University in St. Louis and is currently a PhD student in the Department of Sociology at the University of Washington, working on her M.A. under the supervision of CSDE Affiliate and Professor of Sociology Jerald R. Herting. As a BIPOC scholar, Maxine is committed to applied research and using her research to empower the communities she studies in order to facilitate change. She takes an interdisciplinary and mixed-methods approach to her sociological research, and benefited from the mentorship of CSDE Director Sara Curran, particularly with regards to qualitative methods. She is a trainee in CSDE’s Graduate Certificate in Demographic Methods.

This year, Maxine is providing crucial support for CSDE as the organizer of CSDE Lightning Talks & Poster Session for Fall quarter. And don’t forget! CSDE trainees and other graduate students can submit project proposals for this quarter’s Lightning Talks & Poster Session HERE by Friday, October 23rd!

In addition to her academic research, Maxine is also involved with the Seattle/King County Public Health Department’s Communities of Opportunity initiative, which aims to generate sustainable solutions to disparities in housing, health, employment, and connectedness. In addition, she staffs the Seattle/King County Cities and Counties Fines and Fees Justice coalition, an ongoing grant funded by PolicyLink to mitigate the deleterious impacts of legal financial obligations on low-income communities of color.

New Request for Proposals: NIH Pilot Grants for Animal Models for the Social Dimensions of Health and Aging

Applications are open for NIH’s “Animal Models for the Social Dimensions of Health and Aging Research Network” pilot grant. These projects support research on animal models or comparative studies relevant for understanding the social determinants of health and aging. The grants will support 2 – 4 projects with start dates in 2021 and a maximum budget of $25,000. Project proposals should be submitted through the network website, no later than November 15, 2020. Applicants from US-based institutions are eligible to apply, and NIH strongly encourages applications from junior scientists and underrepresented minorities in biomedical, behavioral, and social sciences research. If you’re considering this funding opportunity, please consider filling out a proposal planning form and you will receive high quality and timely pre-award support for your application from our team!