PRAIRIE VIEW, Texas (April 18, 2022) – A cross-section of Prairie View A&M University (PVAMU) faculty is working collaboratively with The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston (UTHealth-Houston) to develop a diverse talent pipeline for those seeking a career in public health and data science in the future. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology awarded UTHealth-Houston $10 million for its cooperative agreement. Included in the arrangements are Prairie View A&M University (PVAMU) and eight other universities.
“This cooperative agreement will provide PVAMU students with opportunities to get trained by the top researchers in the field of informatics, with real-world experience through paid internship programs and also job-placement mentoring,” said PVAMU Chief Scientist and Executive Professor Seungchan Kim, Ph.D. Kim is the principal investigator on this project for PVAMU.
PVAMU will receive approximately $450,000 to support the faculty involved. UTHealth will sponsor students participating in summer boot camps and certificate programs. It is expected that 90 PVAMU students will participate in the summer boot camps. An additional 100 students will benefit from the program by participating in various undergraduate courses and certificate programs developed by the consortium.
The HHS grant supports the Gaining Equity in Training for Public Health Informatics and Technology consortium, or GET PHIT, which hopes to oversee the training of approximately 1,900 students and health and academic professionals.
“This training grant aligns with the research Dr. Seungchan Kim is currently conducting in PVAMU’s Center for Computational Systems Biology (CCSB), said Magesh Rajan, Ph.D., PE., MBA, vice president for the Division of Research & Innovation. “By having students involved in informatics, bioinformatics, and computational biology research projects through CCSB, we are providing skills necessary to be successful in the workforce of the future.”
Funding has already begun to benefit students and faculty with invaluable learning experiences.
“The university’s involvement in this project helps solidify our role in providing our students with cutting-edge technology and skills while preparing them for the workforce,” said Co-investigator Sharon McWhinney, Ph.D., professor, and chair of the Human Nutrition, Dietetics and Food Security Group at PVAMU. “As the university seeks to provide a high-quality educational experience for students, the knowledge and training gained through their involvement in this project will boost students’ self-sufficiency and professional competence.”
Informatics in Public Health
Informatics, which involves the storage, processing, and communication of information from a user-centered perspective, is an emerging interdisciplinary field with computer applications in the health care industry. Its use promises to improve patient care by optimizing telehealth, electronic medical records, and healthcare-related apps through better use and sharing of critical data.
McWhinney said that PVAMU’s share of the funding would provide students with opportunities to be trained by top researchers in the field, receive real-world experience through paid internship programs, obtain valuable mentoring from established professionals, and secure job placement upon graduation.
PVAMU faculty will also benefit from additional professional development opportunities by working with UTHealth, encouraging others to excel in this promising field.
“Prairie View A&M faculty will be directly involved in curriculum development, especially in data science, curriculum review, and delivery of courses, to not only PVAMU students—by incorporating into existing courses—but also the students from other consortium members through the summer camps,” said Kim.
PVAMU faculty involved in the grant award include McWhinney and Kim, along with Co-investigators Andrea McDonald, Ph.D. (Health & Kinesiology), Max Winshell Fontus, Ph.D. (Undergraduate Medical Academy, Chemistry), Noushin Ghaffari, Ph.D. (Computer Science), and Naznin Sultana, Ph.D. (Undergraduate Medical Academy).
They will partner with UTHealth, Texas Tech University Health Science Center, Huston-Tillotson University, Texas A&M International University, Texas Southern University, The University of Texas Arlington, The University of Texas El Paso, The University of Texas Permian Basin, and The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley.
“In partnering with these Texas universities, UTHealth can share best practices and lessons learned while also helping the underrepresented public health informatics and technology workforce flourish,” said McWhinney. “Prairie View’s efforts will increase the representation of underrepresented communities within the public health IT workforce by increasing diversity and growing the nation’s public health workforce to meet future needs.”
The $10 million cooperative agreement is part of a $73 million award to universities across the country.