SUNY Downstate Health Sciences University Awarded $3.2 Million For Comprehensive National Health Career Opportunity Program
Oct 9, 2018
Five-Year Federal Grant Provides In Funding for Diversity in Health Care Academy
Brooklyn, NY - SUNY Downstate Health Sciences University announced receipt of a 5-year federal grant from the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA). The $3.2 million grant will fund the Comprehensive National Health Careers Opportunity Program (HCOP) Academy at SUNY Downstate. The Office of Diversity Education and Research in the College of Medicine and the Arthur Ashe Institute of Urban Health will work in collaboration on the HCOP Academy to attract, recruit, and retain economically and educationally disadvantaged students from Brooklyn.
"We're delighted to partner with our colleagues to address the need for STEM pipeline programs," said SUNY Downstate president Wayne J. Riley, M.D. "As the only academic medical center in Brooklyn, we are committed to empowering the next generation of medical professionals and providing opportunities for underrepresented students while promoting diversity in health care. This HRSA grant affords us opportunities to reach students who might otherwise not have considered the variety of career paths healthcare offers."
The HCOP Academy supports several pipeline programs to increase the diversity of high school, undergraduate, and post-baccalaureate students entering health professions careers. Scholarships will be offered to health profession degree students from North and Central Brooklyn communities to support students entering the College of Medicine and the College of Health-Related Professions.
"The HCOP Academy will support the legacy of diversity of SUNY Downstate Health Sciences University and advance our mission to train the best and brightest students," said principal investigator and SUNY Downstate Diversity Education and Research director Dr. Anika Daniels-Osaze.
Along with Dr. Daniels-Osaze, Diversity Education and Research associate dean Dr. Carla Boutin-Foster, and Drs. Marilyn Fraser and Mary Valmont of the Arthur Ashe Institute for Urban Health will lead the HCOP Academy. Educational objectives for the HCOP Academy include research and clinical exposure, MCAT training, comprehensive financial aid, scholarship information, and primary care exposure in federally qualified health centers in North and Central Brooklyn.
For more information on the Downstate's HCOP Academy programs, click here.
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About SUNY Downstate Health Sciences University
Downstate Health Sciences University in Brooklyn is one of four academic health centers (AMCs) in The State University of New York (SUNY) 64-campus system and the only SUNY AMC in New York City dedicated to health education, research, and patient care for the borough’s 2.7 million residents. Its flagship hospital, University Hospital at Downstate (UHD), is a teaching hospital and benefits from the expertise of Downstate’s exceptional medical school and world-class academic center research facilities. With a staff of over 800 physicians representing 53 specialties and subspecialties, Downstate offers comprehensive healthcare services to the community.
UHD provides high-risk neonatal and infant services, pediatric nephrology, and dialysis for kidney diseases and is the only kidney transplantation program in Brooklyn. Beyond its clinical expertise, Downstate houses a range of esteemed educational institutions, including its College of Medicine, College of Nursing, School of Health Professions, School of Graduate Studies, and School of Public Health. Downstate fosters innovation through its multifaceted biotechnology initiative, the Biotechnology Incubator and BioBAT, which support early-stage and more mature biotech companies.