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Office of Research & Development

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Summer Research Program

In June 2022, the inaugural VA Office of Research and Development (ORD)-sponsored Summer Research Programs (SRPs) welcomed 115 student participants at 21 VA sites across the country. This three year pilot program is a cornerstone of ORD's efforts to strengthen and diversify the VA scientific work force by offering research experiences to Veterans, children of Veterans, and underrepresented students. Of note, this first cohort of students included 74 college students, 8 graduate students, 11 high school students, 17 medical students, 3 medical professional students, and 2 VA employees.

 VA ORD Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Initiative Summer Research Program map

ORD Summer Research Program locations are indicated with stars..

For questions regarding the VA ORD Summer Research Program, please contact VHACOORDDEIWG@va.gov, or any of the site point of contacts (POCs) listed below.

SRP Site

Focus Area

Website/POC email

Site PI

Asheville, NC VAMC

Multi-disciplinary, including bench science, mental health, primary care, and nursing

vhaashscan-rd@va.gov

Karla Weidner, Paula Geigle

Baltimore VAMC

Data science, geriatrics and aging science, rehabilitation and whole health

Jeffrey.Beans@va.gov;
Join Us For An Exciting Data Science-Oriented Summer Research Experience! | VA Maryland Health Care | Veterans Affairs

Beth Hogans and Odessa Addison

Bedford, MA

Health services research and implementation science

Jacquelyn.Pendergast@va.gov

Donald Keith McInnes

Boston VAHCS

AI in medicine, clinical research
VABHS SRP Flyer

Lisa.Jepeal@va.gov

Satish Singh

Boston VAHCS

Neuroscience and Mental Health Research

megmaciver99@gmail.com

Robert Strecker

Central Western Massachusetts VAMC

Women’s Health

Kristin.Mattocks@va.gov
Aimee.Kroll-Desrosiers@va.gov

Kristin Mattocks, Amy Kroll-Dersosiers

Charleston VAMC

Bench Science and Clinical Science:

Cardiology (heart failure, myocardial infarction); Vascular (stroke, aortic aneurysm); Orthopedics (bone repair); Immunology (cellular immune system)

Neurology (brain, sleep, cognitive function) Mental Health (PTSD, suicide prevention, substance abuse)

Rehabilitation Research:

Human Rehabilitation Science; Stroke Recovery; Gait analysis; Neurocognitive studies

Health Services Research:

Health services delivery; Quality improvement studies; Data science; Health Care access studies

Sarah.Jackson@va.gov
Charleston SURF Application 2023

R. Amanda LaRue and Jeffrey Jones

Cleveland VAMC

A) Prosthetics/Orthotics, B) Neural interfaces, C) Health Monitoring and Maintenance, D) Activity-Based Neurorehabilitation, E) Computer-Aided Diagnosis and Detection of Disease

ahess@aptcenter.org

Website

Application

Jeffrey Capadona

Columbia, SC VAMC

Neurobiology of stress, cardiovascular disease, obesity, women’s health, Gulf War Illness Syndrome, and renal disease. 

Michael.Ryan1@va.gov

Michael Ryan

Hines VAMC, Hines IL

Veterans with disabilities, whole health, infectious diseases, antibiotic stewardship, and QUERI funded projects

Marissa.Wirth@va.gov

Website and application

Charlesnika Evans

Minneapolis VAMC

Veteran Mental Health

Program Director: Melissa.polusny@va.gov

Snezana.Urosevic@va.gov

Website

Melissa Polusny

Snezana Urosevic

Nashville VAMC

Infectious Diseases, Immunology, Cardiology, Endocrinology, Nephrology, Gastroenterology

Holly.algood@va.gov

Holly Algood

Oklahoma VAMC

Bench/preclinical science

Website

Robert Hal Scofield

Phoenix VAMC

Nutrition

katherine.petersen@va.gov

Diane Parrington

Pittsburgh VAMC

Rehabilitation engineering, Assistive technology design and development, Bioengineering, Clinical research

VALOR SRP

Project proposals

POC:D. Joshua Marino, at djm131@pitt.edu

Rory Cooper

Providence RI VAMC

Long-term services and support whitney_mills@brown.edu
Whitney.Mills@va.gov

Whitney Mills

Puget Sound VAHCS (Seattle)

Cachexia/sarcopenia (clinical and pre-clinical research) and TBI-related hormone dysfunction (clinical research)

lindsey.anderson5@va.gov

Jose Garcia and Lindsey Anderson

Rocky Mountain VAHCS (Aurora, CO)

Suicide Prevention

Website, Samantha.Hack@va.gov

Lisa Brenner, Samantha Hack

VA Caribbean VACHS (San Juan, PR)

Clinical Research (Health Disparities Research, TBI, Mental Health, Cardiac, Pulmonary, Cancer, Gastro, Nuclear Medicine, Women Health)

irma.molina@va.gov
lourdes.guerrios-rivera@va.gov
ingrid.bonilla-mercado@va.gov

Irma Molina-Vicenty

Southern Arizona VAHCS, Tucson, AZ

Medical student research focusing on clinical and basic science investigations

jwertheim@arizona.edu
Jason.wertheim@va.gov

Jason Wertheim



Questions about the R&D website? Email the Web Team

Any health information on this website is strictly for informational purposes and is not intended as medical advice. It should not be used to diagnose or treat any condition.