Expanding the Pipeline to Graduate Research in Alzheimer’s Disease and Related Dementias (EPGRAD) Program

2024 Program Dates: May 26, 2024 – July 20, 2024

Applications go live December 15th, 2023

The Expanding the Pipeline to Graduate Research in Alzheimer’s Disease and Related Dementias (EPGRAD) Program is an 8-week summer education and research training opportunity for undergraduates that is designed to encourage students from communities that are underrepresented in the biomedical and behavioral health sciences to pursue graduate studies and careers in Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias research.

The EPGRAD Program takes place at both George Washington University in Washington, DC and Boston University in Boston, MA. EPGRAD Program participants will spend 4 weeks at each host institution during the program learning from and working with faculty mentors who are leaders in the field of Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias. In addition to working on research projects and participating in educational activities, EPGRAD Program participants will also have many opportunities to network and participate in engaging social activities in both Washington and Boston.

The EPGRAD Program is funded by grant R25 AG081177 from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) National Institute on Aging (NIA). The first cohort of EPGRAD scholars completed the program in the summer of 2023.

GWU Program Director: Dr. Adam Ciarleglio

BU Program Directors: Dr. Rhoda Au and Dr. Hugo Aparicio

Join T.E.A.M Milken! T.E.A.M. Milken is open to all GWSPH undergraduate majors. Our goal is to provide individualized support to students so you will thrive at GW and be prepared to launch your public health career.

Key components of the fully-funded 8-week summer EPGRAD Program:

Education: Students will participate in short courses covering fundamental concepts in epidemiology and data science in the context of Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias research. Students will also have opportunities to participate in seminars, journal clubs, and field trips as well as graduate school admissions counseling, training in the responsible conduct of research, and training in skills essential for graduate school success.
Research: Students will work with faculty mentors on a primary research project based on the Framingham Heart Study Brain Aging Program and present their findings at an end-of-program research symposium. Research projects will require the use of epidemiologic and data science skills learned during the program.
Networking and Community: Students will have many opportunities to network with other EPGRAD Program participants and faculty, attend fun social events in Washington and Boston, and stay connected after the summer program is completed. 2024 Program Dates: The program will run from May 26 to July 20, 2024. The first 4 weeks (May 26 – June 22) will take place at the George Washington University in Washington, DC and the last 4 weeks (June 23 – July 20) will take place at Boston University in Boston, MA. All EPGRAD participants are expected to participate full-time during the 8-week program.

Details on Travel, Housing, Meals, and Stipend:

Travel: Travel to Washington, DC at the start of the program and travel from Boston, MA at the end of the program will be arranged and funded for all participants once they are accepted into the program. Travel between Washington, DC and Boston, MA will also be arranged and funded. In addition, SmartTrip and CharlieCard public transportation passes will be provided to students during the 8-week program.
Housing: Student housing for the entire 8-week program will be provided in student dormitories on the George Washington University and Boston University campuses.
Meals: All students will receive a GWorld Card with funds loaded for purchasing three meals per day on the George Washington University campus and Terrier Cards with funds loaded to purchase three meals per day on the Boston University campus.
Stipend: EPGRAD participants will receive a stipend of $2800 for the 8-week period.

Funding for EPGRAD is provided by the National Institutes of Health through grant R25AG081177.

To be eligible to participate in the EPGRAD Program, applicants must:

Be enrolled in and have completed at least one year as an undergraduate in good standing at an accredited college or university in the US but should not have graduated by the start of the program (i.e., should be a rising sophomore, junior, or senior). They may also be enrolled at a community or junior college, completing at least three courses per academic term, with at least 30 credits completed by the start of the EPGRAD Program.
Have completed at least one semester of precalculus or higher-level mathematics, regardless of major. AP Calculus and/or AP Statistics credit will count towards this requirement.
Be a citizen or non-citizen national of the US or have been admitted for permanent residence.

Applications from all eligible applicants will be considered. We encourage applications from eligible interested students who fall into one or more of the categories considered as “Underrepresented Populations in the U.S. Biomedical, Clinical, Behavioral and Social Sciences Research Enterprise” (based on the Notice of NIH’s Interest in Diversity), which include:

Individuals from racial and ethnic groups that have been shown by the National Science Foundation to be underrepresented in health-related sciences on a national basis (see data at http://www.nsf.gov/statistics/showpub.cfm?TopID=2&SubID=27) and the report Women, Minorities, and Persons with Disabilities in Science and Engineering). The following racial and ethnic groups have been shown to be underrepresented in biomedical research: Blacks or African Americans, Hispanics or Latinos, American Indians or Alaska Natives, Native Hawaiians and other Pacific Islanders. In addition, it is recognized that underrepresentation can vary from setting to setting; individuals from racial or ethnic groups that can be demonstrated convincingly to be underrepresented by the grantee institution should be encouraged to participate in NIH programs to enhance diversity. For more information on racial and ethnic categories and definitions, see the OMB Revisions to the Standards for Classification of Federal Data on Race and Ethnicity (https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/FR-1997-10-30/html/97-28653.htm).
Individuals with disabilities, who are defined as those with a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities, as described in the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, as amended. See NSF data at, https://www.nsf.gov/statistics/2017/nsf17310/static/data/tab7-5.pdf.
Individuals from disadvantaged backgrounds, defined as those who meet two or more of the following criteria:
- Were or currently are homeless, as defined by the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act (Definition: https://nche.ed.gov/mckinney-vento/);
- Were or currently are in the foster care system, as defined by the Administration for Children and Families (Definition: https://www.acf.hhs.gov/cb/focus-areas/foster-care);
- Were eligible for the Federal Free and Reduced Lunch Program for two or more years (Definition: https://www.fns.usda.gov/school-meals/income-eligibility-guidelines);
- Have/had no parents or legal guardians who completed a bachelor’s degree(see https://nces.ed.gov/pubs2018/2018009.pdf);
- Were or currently are eligible for Federal Pell grants(Definition: https://www2.ed.gov/programs/fpg/eligibility.html);
- Received support from the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women,Infants and Children (WIC) as a parent or child(Definition: https://www.fns.usda.gov/wic/wic-eligibility-requirements).
- Grew up in one of the following areas: a) a U.S. rural area, as designated by the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) Rural Health Grants Eligibility Analyzer (https://data.hrsa.gov/tools/rural-health), or b) a Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services-designated Low-Income and Health Professional Shortage Areas (qualifying zip codes are included in the file). Only one of the two possibilities in last point can be used as a criterion for the disadvantaged background definition.
Women: Literature shows that women from the above backgrounds (categories 1, 2, and 3) face particular challenges at the graduate level and beyond in scientific fields. (See, e.g., From the NIH: A Systems Approach to Increasing the Diversity of Biomedical Research Workforce https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5008902/ ).

Leadership Team

Hugo Aparicio, MD, MPH
Assistant Professor, Neurology
Boston University

Rhoda Au, PhD
Professor, Anatomy & Neurobiology
Boston University

Adam Ciarleglio, PhD
Assistant Professor, Biostatistics
George Washington University

Sherral Devine, PhD
Assistant Professor, Anatomy & Neurobiology
Boston University

Maureen O'Connor, PsyD
Assistant Professor, Neurology
Boston University

Program Staff

Hailey Grace Ames
Research Assistant, Framingham Heart Study Brain Aging Program
Boston University

Diane Britton
Fiscal Manager, Biostatistics and Bioinformatics
George Washington University

Stephanie Lee
Administrative Associate, Biostatistics and Bioinformatics
George Washington University

Mentors and Affiliated Faculty

Loretta DiPietro, PhD
Professor, Exercise and Nutrition Science
George Washington University

Chunyu Liu, PhD
Associate Professor, Biostatistics
Boston University

Trudy Mallinson, PhD
Associate Professor, Clinical Research and Leadership
George Washington University

Paul Marvar, PhD
Associate Professor, Pharmacology and Physiology
George Washington University

Jesse Mez, MD
Associate Professor, Neurology
Boston University

Paul Ndebele, PhD
Professorial Lecturer, Global Health
George Washington University

Melinda Power, ScD
Associate Professor, Epidemiology
George Washington University

Emma Stapp, PhD
Assistant Professor, Epidemiology
George Washington University

Thor Stein, MD, PhD
Associate Professor, Pathology and Laboratory Medicine
Boston University

Robert Turner, PhD
Assistant Professor, Clinical Research and Leadership
George Washington University

Meg Ulfers, PhD
Associate Professor, Epidemiology
George Washington University

Nicola Wolfe, PhD
Professorial Lecturer, Psychological and Brain Sciences
George Washington University