UJMT – Morehouse School of Medicine Supplement

ABSTRACT The UJMT Fogarty LAUNCH Program has an established track record in global health research, supporting over 270 US and international trainees to date. While the program has sought to recruit individuals from diverse backgrounds, to date the applicant pool has been limited and poorly defined. Traditional metrics such as race

and ethnicity alone have been inadequate and fail to capture the richness and potential of diverse perspectives in global health. The Fogarty Pathway Program at the Morehouse School of Medicine has been designed to address this gap. Built upon past programmatic experiences and formative research, this newly proposed

initiative seeks to orient and train 10 doctoral students (medical or PhD) through didactic and experiential learning. The program focuses on global hemoglobinopathies research, a scientific priority for NIH and an area of ongoing work for participating US and international faculty. The format is a four-week course abroad, where

US students are taught and supervised in a fostering, mentored environment. Opportunities will be available through separate trips to Accra, Ghana and Kingston, Jamaica. Although the core curriculum will be similar, each builds upon existing relationships and ongoing projects at NIH-approved institutional partners. Recruitment will

focus on individuals who are interested in global health but lack the formative experiences needed to spark further career growth. It will emphasize diverse backgrounds, which will be broadly defined in a manner that is nuanced, inclusive, and fully aligned with the program announcement. In this pilot phase, the Fogarty Pathway

Program will be rigorously evaluated for content, delivery, and participant outcomes. This initiative will enrich the pool of diverse applicants to the UJMT Fogarty LAUNCH Program in ways that remain distinct yet complementary from the parent award. With a demonstration of feasibility and early impact, this initial investment will lead to

sustainable institutional and/or funder support of this important global health pathway.