Position: Research Personnel

Topic: Career Development

Description:

The Center for Clinical and Translational Science has organized a comprehensive educational certificate program for UIC research staff involved in human subjects research [clinical and translational, community-based and/or social/behavioral research].

Primary Audience: New and/or experienced Research Coordinators, Research Specialists, or Staff who work on research projects that involve human subjects, targeting those with project, personnel and/or grants management responsibilities.

Program Goals:

• Offer opportunities for training and professional development for research coordinators and other staff that will add value as they advance their careers at UIC.
• Increase knowledge and self-efficacy of research staff in performing their job responsibilities.
• Provide a seal of approval that Principal Investigators recognize as representing minimal competence when hiring and promoting research staff.
• Communicate standards and best practices for the responsible conduct of research specific to the roles and responsibilities of research coordinators at UIC.

Elements of the RC+ Certificate Program:

• Proof of CITI Trainings
• Complete online course modules
• Attend Best Practice Hour seminars
• Attend Master Classes

*Certificate program is ONLY open to Research Staff at UIC.

Position: Research Personnel, Graduate Students, Pre & Post-Doctoral Trainees, Faculty

Topic: Study/Site/Lab Management

Description:

This session will focus on the Investigator-Initiated Trial (IIT) start-up process and will cover essential steps, including protocol development, regulatory approvals and site activation.

Speaker: 
Celina Garza, MPH
Study Activation Manager, Clinical Trials Office 
University of Illinois Cancer Center

2023-2024 Clinical Research Investigators Seminar Series (CRISS): This training seminar series is intended to provide faculty and other investigators with information and skills needed to conduct clinical research at UIC at all stages of a study’s lifecycle.

Contact: Sudeshna De, Lawrie Zhang, ccts-training@uic.edu

Position: Research Personnel

Topic: Clinical Trial Operations/Finances

Description:

This seminar will describe the potential review processes required to obtain regulatory approval for clinical research conducted at UIC, when these reviews are required, and how to submit projects for review.

Speaker: 
Darlene Kitterman, MBA
Director of UICC Clinical Trials Office

RC+ Program:
Core Competency #4: Clinical Trials Operations

Contact: Sudeshna De, Lawrie Zhang, ccts-training@uic.edu

Position: Faculty

Topic: Career Development

Description:

Join us for "K" Day with talks on topics such as:

• Navigating career development

• Building a Mentoring Team

Selected Scholars will also have the opportunity to present their work in 5 minute Lightning Talks! 

Our keynote speaker is Monica Peek, MD, MPH, Ellen H. Block Professor for Health Justice of Medicine, Associate Director, Chicago Center for Diabetes Translational Research at the University of Chicago

Following the scientific activities, join us for social networking from 5 pm to 7 pm with appetizers and beverages.

Hosted by UIC CCTS Leadership:  Shane Phillips, PhD, Director of UIC CCTS KL2 Scholar Program and Lisa Sharp, PhD. Associate Director of UIC CCTS KL2 Scholar Program in partnership with NUCATS and ITM

Contact information: Elli Resnick, eresnick@uic.edu

Who Should Attend:

• Early career faculty and postdocs
• Faculty working towards a clinical or translational K award
• Any faculty holding a individual K series career development grant or similar career development award

Position:

Topic: Biomedical Informatics/Data Science

Description:

QUICKSet, or “Query UIC Knowledge Set,” is the CCTS Biomedical Informatics Core built version of the i2b2 (Informatics for Integrating Biology and the Bedside) framework. The purpose of this tool is to allow researchers to access de-identified clinical data from the UI Health system to obtain aggregate patient counts. QUICKSet can facilitate a study by helping researchers to quickly establish the feasibility of carrying out a research study or clinical trial, work through hypothesis creation by continually modifying their own searches, and to identify potential cohorts for clinical trials.

Completion of this training module is required to gain access to the QUICKSet system. To request a consultation or supplementary service at CCTS, please visit Research Ally.

Position: Graduate Students, Pre & Post-Doctoral Trainees, Faculty

Topic: Career Development

Description:

Successful career development grants need a strong research concept, a solid career development plan, and skillful writing. CCTS Grant Writing Coaching Groups can help support you! Modeled after successful formats from the National Research Mentoring Network, these small groups are geared toward senior postdocs writing K99/R00 proposals and junior faculty writing other types of K grants. (Other types of career development proposals are also welcome.) With support from peers and a senior faculty coach with NIH reviewing experience, 4-5 participants will work together to refine their Specific Aims pages, biosketches, and career development/training plans.

Current meetings are on Wednesdays at 11 AM (5 openings) via Zoom.

Eligibility:

To participate, you must

• Be a senior postdoc or junior faculty member planning to submit a K99, other types of K proposal, or similar career development proposals like AHA or ALA.
• Have an aims page drafted (no matter how rough)
• Have identified a primary mentor
• Planning to submit a proposal for deadlines in October 2024 (or February 2025) 

Sign-Up for a Group starting in October!

Position: Faculty

Topic: Career Development

Description:

Dr. Renee Taylor and Dr. Richard Minshall, co-Directors of CCTS Team Science will facilitate a Zoom roundtable discussion about the multiple pathways to obtaining independence as a scientist.

Speakers: 

Dr. Renee Taylor, Professor, Occupational Therapy, Associate Dean for Academic and Faculty Affairs, College of Applied Health Sciences
Director, Model of Human Occupation and Intentional Relationship Model Clearinghouse, Occupational Therapy

& 

Dr. Richard Minshall, Professor of Anesthesiology and Pharmacology
College of Medicine

Contact: Sudeshna De, Lawrie Zhang, ccts-training@uic.edu

Position: Research Personnel

Topic: Clinical Trial Operations/Finances

Description:

The CCTS Master Class seminar series helps clinicians, research coordinators/specialists and other health research personnel develop a better understanding of conducting human subjects research at UIC.  These immersive training workshops enable participants to implement best practices for human research subject protection, recruitment, study conduct, and data safety/security.

The Master Class on Financial Management: Pre-Award will be held over 2 days, about 2 hours per day, and will cover activities related to research funding that during the funding procurement or contract negotiation period.  Presentations from both study team members as well as university administrative offices will provide multiple perspectives on the processes involved with securing funding, working with funding agencies and sponsors, and developing budgets.

When: Wednesday, January 29th, from 1PM-3PM and Thursday, January 30th, from 1PM-3PM

Register for Zoom link! 

*The program will be recorded, and the recording will be made available to those enrolled in the CCTS’s RC+ Certificate Program

Contact: Sudeshna De, Lawrie Zhang, ccts-training@uic.edu

Position: Research Personnel

Topic: Drug Discovery

Description:

This seminar will cover the IND/IDE submission process, specifically focusing on:

1. Investigator initiated IND/IDE
2. Single patient (emergency use) IND/IDE
3. Requirements after IND/IDE is approved for use

Speaker: 
Darlene Kitterman, MBA
Director of UICC Clinical Trials Office

RC+ Program:
Core Competency #3: Medicine Development & Regulation

Contact: Sudeshna De, Lawrie Zhang, ccts-training@uic.edu

Position:

Topic: Human Subject Protections

Description:

CIRTification: Community Involvement in Research Training is a human research protections training program designed especially for community partners. If you will be involved in research and responsible for recruiting research participants, obtaining informed consent, or collecting data, this training is for you.  This course will cover:

• Introduction to Research: The basic terminology, activities, and people involved in research and various ethical considerations.
• Research History: Some research abuses that have happened in the past and the rules we have now to prevent those abuses.  This module also introduces the goals of community engagement in research and the important responsibilities shared by community research partners.
• Eligibility & Recruitment: The importance of adhering to study inclusion/exclusion criteria and best practices identifying and recruiting research participants.
• Informed Consent: The key components of informed consent, the kinds of information included in the consent form, how to respond to participants’ questions about enrollment and withdrawal, and discussion of practical challenges and good practices.
• The Institutional Review Board: The people on the IRB, the process of submitting to the IRB, and the criteria that IRBs apply to the review of research.
• Collecting & Protecting Data: How to protect participant privacy and keep data safe and confidential during collection, transport, and storage.
• Handling Issues in the Field: What do to if you suspect a co-worker of falsifying data, run into a study participant outside of work, and get challenging questions from study participants.