James Takayesu, an emergency room physician at MGH and father of three children, is struggling to find time to launch a new medical education initiative as he tries to balance a heavy clinical and administrative workload with increasing childcare responsibilities at home.
Jennifer Mack, a pediatric oncologist at DFCI and single mother of two daughters, is eager to begin a study of relationships between physicians and parents of children with cancer, but her current research funding is about to expire and she lacks bridge support to collect pilot data that is essential for future independent funding.
Fortunately, the Eleanor and Miles Shore 50th Anniversary Fellowship Program for Scholars in Medicine has recently come to the rescue of Takayesu and Mack, along with a select group of approximately 75 other HMS junior faculty members facing similar challenges. Click here for a full listing of 2012 Shore fellowship award recipients.
The program was established in 1996 to honor the 50th anniversary of the admission of women to HMS and is designed to support junior faculty members (women and men) during a vulnerable period of their careers when they are trying to balance the demands of academic medicine and family life.
For Takayesu, HMS assistant professor and associate residency program director of the Harvard-affiliated emergency medicine residency program at Partners, the timing of the award was critical. “In April of 2011, my wife designed and opened a new charter school in Salem to address the high drop-out rate of at-risk youth in that community. This has been an amazing opportunity for her, but it has also has put a great deal of stress on our family, with both of our careers growing rapidly while raising three children, ages 11, 7, and 3,” said Takayesu.
“Without this fellowship, I would have had to delay or abandon the educational project given my family responsibilities and current role as an associate residency program director. The administrative responsibilities of this role are significant and rarely afford the time to pursue my own academic development,” said Takayesu.
Mack, HMS assistant professor of pediatric oncology, also stresses the importance of the timing of the award. “I am nearing the end of my career development award and transitioning to independent funding has been challenging. This award will help me through that time as I continue to work toward major grant funding, and it has also allowed me to start new and interesting work while I continue to work toward funding,” said Mack.
The fellowships are funded by a variety of sources, including HMS, HSDM, affiliated institutes, departments, divisions, and centers, as well as by private donors. Fellows are provided a 1- to 2-year stipend in support of scholarly work such as writing a grant application, preparing a manuscript, completing a research project, or developing a new educational curriculum. The funds may also be used for additional laboratory assistance at a time when a junior faculty member does not yet have independent funding.
Takayesu will apply his fellowship stipend to support additional protected academic time, which will allow him to pursue his educational project while maintaining a central role in caring for his children while his wife pursues her new career.
Mack will use the stipend to obtain additional manpower for her research, which will provide some needed breathing space in her busy schedule. “I have two young children, and the reality is that it’s hard for me to work evenings or on weekends because of my family. This award has allowed me to hire a project manager who can help to move work forward, even when I’m juggling conflicting demands,” said Mack.
Click here to obtain more information about the program and specific information about application deadlines, proposal and sponsorship requirements.
