About Us

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About Us

Mississippi currently stands as the least healthy state in the U.S., plagued by alarmingly high rates of infant and maternal mortality and chronic disease. While pockets of improvement offer hope, the state still faces monumental structural and access issues. In 2016, the University of Mississippi Medical Center (UMMC) received a $19.8M phase I award from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to support an Institutional Development Award (IDeA) Clinical and Translational Research Network. The IDeA program builds research capacity in states where levels of NIH research funding have historically been low by supporting basic, clinical, and translational research, faculty development and infrastructure improvements. Now in its third phase and eleventh year of funding, the Mississippi Center for Clinical and Translational Research (MCCTR) is a collaborative partnership between five institutions: the University of Mississippi Medical Center, Mississippi State University, Tougaloo College, the University of Mississippi and the University of Southern Mississippi. The major focus of the MCCTR is to leverage an integrated clinical and translational (C/T) research program across UMMC and its partner institutions to address major chronic diseases (e.g., obesity, diabetes, CKD, hypertension, heart disease, cancer, maternal/fetal disorders and dementia) impacting Mississippians.

The center is funded by the IDeA Program Infrastructure for Clinical and Translational Research grant through the National Institute of General Medical Sciences under the award number P50GM115428. 

Mission

Our mission is to develop a powerful and sustainable research enterprise that will have an important public health impact on the citizens of Mississippi.

Goals of the MCCTR

The goals of the MCCTR are to (1) enhance infrastructure and people resources required to address the clinical and translational research needs in Mississippi; (2) increase focus on implementation science and clinical and behavioral interventions to address the health differences associated with cardiometabolic and obesity-related diseases in Mississippi; and (3) foster and coordinate collaboration in clinical and translational research among our partner institutions and within the national network of other academic centers dedicated to the same goals. 

The MCCTR is intended as a hub that will increase the utilization of all research resources of the partner institutions to promote multi-institutional and multi-disciplinary clinical, translational, and community-engaged research projects.

Impact

Mississippi has major challenges in its healthcare delivery and health outcomes. Each year, United Health  Foundation ranks each state’s health status using 35 different measures. In its 2019 rankings, Mississippi ranked worst at 50th overall. Within those 35 measures, Mississippi ranked worst in infant mortality, low birthright, children in poverty, clinical care, infectious disease, chronic kidney diseases, cardiovascular deaths, and Alzheimer deaths and “all determinants”. 

 

Advising & Planning Committees

Executive Committee

Hanna Broome, PhD
Director - Center Effectiveness and Partnership Development
MCCTR

Meagan Brown, PharmD, BCACP
Clinical Assistant Professor
University of Mississippi School of Pharmacy

Joey Granger, PhD
Director
MCCTR

Michael Hall, MD
Director, School of Medicine
University of Mississippi Medical Center

Thomas Hudson
Clinical Research Coordinator
University of Mississippi Medical Center

Holly Huye, PhD
Program Director, Nutrition and Dietetics
University of Southern Mississippi

Lauren Priddy, PhD
Associate Professor, Biomedical Engineering
Mississippi State University

Wendy White, PhD
Principal Investigator/Director
Jackson Heart Study

 

External Advisory Committee

William Cushman, MD, MACP, FAHA
Medical Director, College of Medicine
University of Tennessee Health Science Center

Kieth Ferdinand, MD, FACC, FAHA
Professor, Clinical Medicine
Tulane University Heart and Vascular Institute

Mona Fouad, MD, MPH
Professor, Division of General Internal Medicine and Population Science
University of Alabama at Birmingham

Daniel Lackland, DrPH
Professor, Epidemiology
Medical University of South Carolina

Paul Whelton, MD, MSc
Vice President for Health Sciences
Tulane University

 

Steering Committee

Gene "Lee" Bidwell, PhD
Associate Professor - Neurology
University of Mississippi Medical Center 

Joey Granger, PhD
Director, MCCTR

Michael Hall, MD
Director, School of Medicine
University of Mississippi Medical Center

Julie Jordan, PhD
Senior Advisor for AI and Data Governance
Mississippi State University

Melissa Thompson, PhD, CMPC, F-AASP
Executive Associate Dean, College of Education and Human Sciences
University of Southern Mississippi

Pamela Payne-Foster, MD, MPH
Provost/Vice President for Academic Affairs
Tougaloo College

Donna Strum, PhD, PharmD
Dean, School of Pharmacy
University of Mississippi

 

Core Leadership

Administrative Core

Hanna Broome, PhD
Director, Center Effectiveness and Partnership Development
MCCTR

Meagan Brown, PharmD, BCACP
Clinical Assistant Professor
University of Mississippi School of Pharmacy

Emma Draughn
Marketing Director and NIH Grant Editor
MCCTR

Joey Granger, PhD
Director, MCCTR

Michael Hall, MD
Director of Clinical and Population Science, MCCTR
Director, School of Medicine - University of Mississippi Medical Center

Sarah Mason, PhD
Director, Center for Research Evaluation - Univeristy of Mississippi
Evaluation Expert, MCCTR 

Kimberlee McGuire
Director of Research Operations, MCCTR

Chevonne Robinson
Project Manager, MCCTR

Rachel Scott, EdD
Principal Evaluation Associate, Center for Research Evaluation
University of Mississippi

 

Community Engagement and Outreach Core

Caroline Compretta, PhD
Assistant Vice Chancellor for Research, University of Mississippi Medical Center
Director, CEO Core, MCCTR

Kisa Harris, PhD, MPH, CHES
Biostatistics/Epidemiology Instructor
Jackson Heart Study

Holly Huye, PhD 
Program Director, Nutrition and Dietetics - University of Southern Mississippi
Director, CEO Core, MCCTR

Alicia Landry, PhD, RD 
Assistant Professor, School of Kinesiology and Nutrition
University of Southern Mississippi

Charlotte Love
Project Manager, Preventitive Medicine 
University of Mississippi Medical Center 

Stephanie McCoy, PhD
Director, School of Kinesiology and Nutrition
University of Southern Mississippi

Mary Robertson, PhD
Assistant Professor, Biochemistry, Nutrition and Health Promotion
Mississippi State University

Mary Beth Simmons
Grant Support Specialist
University of Southern Mississippi

Wendy White, PhD
Principal Investigator/Director, Jackson Heart Study
Director, CEO Core, MCCTR

 

Health Research Core

Michael Hall, MD
Director, School of Medicine - University of Mississippi Medical Center
Director, HR Core, MCCTR

David Buys, PhD, CPH, FACHE, FGSA
Professor/Chair, Population Health Science - University of Mississippi Medical Center
Director, HR Core, MCCTR
 

Professional Development Core

Denise Cornelius, PhD, FAHA
Professor/Vice Chair, Pharmacology
University of Mississippi Medical Center

John Hall, PhD
Professor, Physiology and Biophysics
University of Mississippi Medical Center

Amol Janorkar, PhD
Chair, Biomedical Materials Science
University of Mississippi Medical Center 

Licy Yanes Cardozo, MD 
Associate Professor, Cell and Molecular Biology
University of Mississippi Medical Center

 

Research Design, Compliance and Data Management Core

Lavanya Challagundla, PhD
Assistant Professor, Cell and Molecular Biology
University of Mississippi Medical Center 

John Clemmer, PhD
Assistant Professor, Physiology & Biophysics
University of Mississippi Medical Center 
Patient Cohort Navigator, RDCD Core, MCCTR

Lindsey Kuiper, PhD
Telehealth REsearch Administrator, Telehealth Center of Excellence
University of Mississippi Medical Center
Telehealth Navigator, RDCD Core, MCCTR

Seth Lirette, PhD
Associate Professor, Data Science
University of Mississippi Medical Center 
Director, RDCD Core, MCCTR

Wondwosen Yimer, PhD
Assistant Professor, Data Science
University of Mississippi Medical Center

Yufeng Zheng, PhD
Professor, Data Science
University of Mississippi Medical Center

 

Research Services Core

Ken Butler, PhD
Professor, Pharmacology and Toxicology
University of Mississippi Medical Center
Cohort Study Navigator, RS Core, MCCTR 

Ashley Gregory, RN
Endoscopy Medicine, University Hospital
University of Mississippi Medical Center
Research Navigator, RS Core, MCCTR

Thomas Hudson
Clinical Research Coordinator
University of Mississippi Medical Center

Gailen Marshall, MD, PhD
R. Faser Triplett Sr. MD Chair in Allergy and Immunology
University of Mississippi Medical Center 
Director, RS Core, MCCTR

Joshua Speed, PhD
Assistant Professor, Physiology and Biophysics 
University of Mississippi Medical Center 

Natalie Wilson
Research Associate, Physiology and Biophysics
University of Mississippi Medical Center 

 

Partnering Centers


The Mississippi Center for Clinical and Translational Research partners with the following centers to advance research efforts:

Partnering institutions

The Mississippi Center for Clinical and Translational Research consists of the following institutional partners: