Development Core

The BREATHE Children's Center's mission includes a deep commitment to training the next generation of scientists engaged in children's environmental health research. The BREATHE Center has a history of success to training early career investigators that has produced some of the leading researchers in the nation. The

longstanding relationships with the community and the foundation of trust built over decades of community engaged research provides a unique environment to engage trainees from diverse backgrounds. The team approach to science offers each trainee and early career investigator the opportunity to benefit from the unique

expertise of members of a multidisciplinary team. The Center model is to design a mentoring team for each trainee that includes junior and more senior faculty. The diverse scientific expertise of faculty includes pediatric medicine, pulmonary medicine, environmental and exposure science, epidemiology, clinical trials, behavioral

science, implementation science, communication, and policy engagement. Faculty in the Development Core will provide one-on-one mentoring, facilitate access to formal didactics, provide hands-on teaching about environmental health research to trainees, and will oversee the execution of the pilot projects. As

part of the Catalyst Program, BREATHE trainees will have access to equipment, supplies, biospecimens and a developmental program, including workshops and children's environmental health forums, aimed at fostering collaborations and career development. The pilot studies will leverage the existing infrastructure to address novel

hypotheses with respect to unique exposures, health outcomes, and factors that may influence children's health and will also be nimble to allow researchers to propose time sensitive projects that address emergent environmental health issues. The program will be administered by experienced investigators with a rigorous

review process. These resources will provide access for early investigators, both within and outside the institution, to engage in all aspects of children's environmental health research, advancing novel discovery with a community engaged approach, with a research staff and biostatical support dedicated specifically to pilot

studies. The Development Core will interact with the Administrative and Translation Cores to solicit feedback in developing the request for applications and in development activities to ensure activities are well aligned with the overall goal of the BREATHE Children's Center mission. Our goal is to expand and diversify the engagement

of early career investigators conducting children's environmental lung health research (Aim 1). To support the conduct, analysis and interpretation of pilot studies that apply innovative approaches to address novel hypotheses and emergent threats regarding environmental exposures that contribute to children's respiratory

health (Aim 2). To disseminate findings to the scientific and lay community regarding study results and real-world implications by partnering with the Translational Core (Aim 3). The Development core has the goal of training the next generation of leaders to advance children's environmental health at the local, state, and national level.