Centers for Disease Control and Prevention awards FAMU $750,000

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) awarded FAMU $750,000 over three years for its Environmental Health, and Toxicology Educational Research Program.

FAMU is one of only two recipients of the award.

This award will address the initiative titled the Jacksonville Racial and Ethnic Environmental Approaches to Community Health (REEACH). This initiative will allow the FAMU and the Division of Environmental Health and Disease Control (DEHDC) Environmental Health and Safety in Jacksonville, Fla., to provide the opportunity to develop and disseminate an environmental medicine curriculum to area health providers. FAMU and the Duval County Health Department’s Environmental Health Division will also work together to provide a “train the trainer” program for community leaders and stakeholders.

“The most significant aspect of this opportunity is to work collaboratively with those concerned with environmental contaminants in underserved communities,” said Principal Investigator for the award, Cynthia M. Harris, director of FAMU’s Institute of Public Health (IPH) in the College of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences. “It will take a team of not only academics, but health departments and community members to address these concerns. We are pleased that the federal agency, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry has granted us this award. These resources will enable us to provide environmental toxicology materials and a curriculum that will be developed by and for local health professionals and community members in Jacksonville, Fla.”

FAMU’s vice president for research, Larry Robinson, acknowledged that the focus of the award is quite significant.

“This will allow us to address an issue that forms the basis of our commitment to understanding and resolving environmental issues confronting underserved populations,” said Robinson.

“This award helps to support the University’s mission, shaping the future of our students and contributes to solving issues impacting global society,” said Barbara Clayton, director of the FAMU Office of Sponsored Programs within the Division of Research.