Author: Bram Harris
December 19, 2024
This October saw FAER hold its third annual Academic Giving Competition (AGC). First introduced in 2022, the AGC is a fun, friendly competition held between academic anesthesiology departments as a means to raise funds in support of anesthesiology’s early-career investigators.
The competition ran for 12 days, centered around ANESTHESIOLOGY® 2024. This year, FAER introduced a new tiering structure to create a more level playing field for the competitors. All departments with 110 or more faculty members were designated as Large Tier, while all departments with fewer than 110 faculty members were designated as Small Tier.1 Departments in each tier competed against each other for victory in one of two winning categories, most funds raised and most donors.
Nine Small Tier and 22 Large Tier departments threw their scrub caps in the ring for AGC 2024, with each “Team” led by volunteer “Captains” committed to the future of anesthesiology research. These Team Captains generously offered their time and passion in promoting giving and keeping their colleagues and supporters informed of where things stood on the leaderboard.
In past years, FAER was blown away by the torrent of donations made during the AGC, meeting and beating the Foundation’s original fundraising goals for each year. In recognition of this success, FAER set an ambitious goal of $350,000 for AGC 2024, enough to fund both an entire Mentored Research Training Grant (MRTG) and Research in Education Grant (REG). The 2024 goal constituted a full $100,000 increase over the goal set for AGC 2023.
Thanks to the exemplary efforts of the Team Captains, the competition kicked off with a bang on October 11. The Small and Large Tier leaderboards shifted back and forth over the following days as donors came out to support research and their favorite Teams’ efforts to stand as top dog of the proverbial fundraising pack. As the sun rose on AGC 2024’s final day, though, about $270,000 had been raised – an outstanding showing from the teams and donors, but a fair deal short of the $350,000 goal.
However, rather than dampening spirits, the $80,000 left to fill on the AGC thermometer instead fueled an incredible final surge from donors. By 3:30 p.m. on closing day, total funds raised broke $300,000, surpassing the $309,000 raised for AGC 2023 shortly thereafter. And in the last two hours of the competition the donors made a mighty final push, catapulting FAER to the $350,000 mark – and beyond!
When all was said and done, the 31 AGC teams had raised a staggering $371,239 thanks to 1,055 wonderful donors! Exceeding FAER’s original goal by over $20,000, the funds raised were enough to cover an entire MRTG, an entire REG, and sponsor four Medical Student Anesthesia Research Fellows (MSARF)! The total raised in 2024 represents a 20% increase in funds raised during AGC 2023, and a 125% increase compared to the inaugural AGC in 2022. FAER is truly moved by this outpouring of support and would like to express its heartfelt thanks to all those who made this year’s competition such a colossal success.
The competition was heated all the way up to the final hours, but in the end four Teams (two per Tier) stood triumphant. Drumroll please!
Please join FAER in congratulating The Medical College of Wisconsin; University of California, San Francisco; University of Iowa Carver College of Medicine; and University of Virginia on taking home the gold for AGC 2024. Winning teams will be awarded with a Grand Rounds presented by their choice of a FAER leader; a commemorative trophy; a FAER-sponsored get-together; as well as recognition throughout FAER materials and communication channels to celebrate their success and generosity in winning this year's competition.
On that note, FAER would like to acknowledge the University of California, San Francisco for generously offering to donate their awarded Grand Rounds to a department that may not have as many opportunities to welcome visiting scholars, professors, or specialty thought leaders to speak at their institution.
Simultaneously, FAER would like to give a special shoutout to our runners-up for each tier:
In addition to celebrating our winners and runners-up, FAER is also pleased to share a selection of honorable mentions from this year’s competition. These honorable mentions celebrate the incredible work from the many departments and donors participating in the AGC.
The Early Bird Gets the Worm
Dr. Farzana Afroze made sure that AGC 2024 hit the ground running! Team Captain of Albany Medical College, Dr. Afroze made the first donation of AGC 2024 at 12:04 a.m. CT on October 11 on behalf of her department!
Entering with a Bang
The University of Washington joined for its first AGC in 2024. And boy did they make an entrance! UW not only met their $15,000 fundraising goal, they surpassed it by nearly $10,000, raising a total of $24,433 during AGC 2024!
Lightning Fast Finish
The folks at the University of California, San Francisco put the pedal to the metal as soon as the starting flag waved, surpassing their initial $15,000 fundraising goal on day one of AGC 2024!
Rockin' Residents
Columbia University showed a wave of support from their rock-star residents, with a total of 23 residents donating during AGC 2024.2
Doubling Down
Stanford University brought its A game for AGC 2024! Together, their team raised $30,735 during this year's competition - over twice what they raised during AGC 2023!
Milestone Maker
Dr. Nauder Faraday of Johns Hopkins Medicine made the donation that officially pushed total AGC 2024 funds raised to over $300,000!
We hope you will join FAER in congratulating our winners, runners-up, and honorable mentions on their achievements. As always, though, the true winners of this competition are the physician-investigators these funds will help support, and the patients who will benefit from the research FAER grantees and program participants will produce.
To follow is a full list of all departments and Team Captains that took part in the third annual Academic Giving Competition. On behalf of FAER’s grantees, fellows and scholars, FAER expresses its immense gratitude to everyone who helped make this competition such a success.
| LARGE TIER TEAMS | |
| Institution & Department | Team Captain(s) |
| Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center Department of Anesthesia, Critical Care and Pain Medicine |
Lia Metzger, MD; Brian P. O'Gara, MD; Nana Ohene, MD; Jessica Sikka, MD |
| Columbia University Department of Anesthesiology |
May Hua, MD, MSc; Robert Maniker, MD |
| Emory University Department of Anesthesiology |
Anna Woodbury, MD |
| Indiana University School of Medicine Department of Anesthesia |
Fletcher A. White, PhD |
| Johns Hopkins Medicine Department of Anesthesiology and Critical Care Medicine |
Roger A. Johns, MD, MHS, PhD; C. David Mintz, MD; Kathryn R. Rosenblatt, MD, MHS |
| Mayo Clinic Rochester Department of Anesthesiology and Perioperative Medicine |
Emily Sharpe, MD, FASA; Elizabeth R. Vogel, MD, PhD |
| Medical College of Wisconsin Department of Anesthesiology |
Thomas J. Ebert, MD, PhD; Julie K. Freed, MD, PhD; Cynthia A. Lien, MD |
| Stanford University Medical Center Department of Anesthesiology, Perioperative and Pain Medicine |
Pamela Flood, MD, MA; Eric R. Gross, MD, PhD |
| UCLA David Geffen School of Medicine Department of Anesthesiology & Perioperative Medicine |
Soban Umar, MD, PhD; |
| University of Alabama at Birmingham Department of Anesthesiology and Perioperative Medicine |
Elizabeth W. Duggan, MD, MA; Brant M. Wagener, MD, PhD |
| University of California, San Diego Department of Anesthesiology |
Tosha Becerra Songolo, MD; Minh H Tran, MBBS, FANZCA |
| University of California, San Francisco Department of Anesthesia and Perioperative Care |
Catherine L. Chen, MD; Gregory A. Chinn, MD, PhD; Alexendar Perez, MD, PhD |
| University of Colorado Department of Anesthesiology |
Ben Cloyd, MD; Katharine George |
| University of Michigan Medical School Department of Anesthesiology |
Chad M. Brummett, MD |
| University of Pennsylvania Department of Anesthesiology and Critical Care |
Caoimhe C. Duffy, MD, MSc, CPPS, FCAI; E. Railey White, MD |
| University of Pittsburgh Medical Center Department of Anesthesiology and Perioperative Medicine |
Andrea Ibarra, MD; Keith Vogt, MD, PhD |
| University of Washington School of Medicine Department of Anesthesiology and Pain Medicine |
C. Michael M. Crowder, MD, PhD |
| UTHealth Houston Department of Anesthesiology |
Paul Potnuru, MD; George W. Williams II, MD, FASA, FCCM, FCCP |
| Vanderbilt University Medical Center Department of Anesthesiology |
Edward Sherwood, MD, PhD |
| Washington University in St. Louis Department of Anesthesiology |
Bradley Fritz, MD, MSCI; Aaron Norris, MD, PhD |
| Weill Cornell Medicine Department of Anesthesiology |
Kane O. Pryor, MD; Hannah Wunsch, MD, MSc |
| Yale School of Medicine Department of Anesthesiology |
Roberta L. Hines, MD, FANZCA; Robert B. Schonberger MD, MHS, MHCDS |
| SMALL TIER TEAMS | |
| Institution & Department | Team Captain(s) |
| Albany Medical College Department of Anesthesiology |
Farzana Afroze, MD; Nibras Bughrara, MD, FCCM, FASA |
| Boston Children's Hospital Department of Anesthesia, Critical Care and Pain Medicine |
Susan Goobie, MD, FRCPC; Megan Nolan |
| Case Western University / Cleveland Medical Center Department of Anesthesiology |
Salim M. Hayek, MD, PhD |
| Mayo Clinic Arizona Department of Anesthesiology |
Molly Kraus, MD; Adam Milam, MD, PhD |
| University of California, Irvine Department of Anesthesiology and Perioperative Care |
Joseph Rinehart, MD |
| University of Iowa Carver College of Medicine Department of Anesthesia |
David W. Kaczka, MD, PhD, FASA, ATSF; Detlef Obal, MD, PhD |
| University of Miami School of Medicine Department of Anesthesiology, Perioperative Medicine and Pain Management |
Elizabeth Mahanna Gabrielli, MD; Paloma Toledo, MD, MPH |
| University of Nebraska Medical Center Department of Anesthesiology |
Karsten Bartels, MD, PhD, MBA |
| University of Virginia Department of Anesthesiology |
Lauren Dunn, MD, PhD; Katherine T. Forkin, MD |
Visit FAER’s dedicated AGC website for more information on this year’s competition. If your department is interested in taking part in next year’s AGC, please contact [email protected]. Additional invitations and information will be sent in 2025.
1 Faculty counts were compiled by FAER staff via review of department faculty listings available on their respective websites.
2 Total resident donors were calculated based on self-identification provided by donors when making their gift.
THE FOUNDATION FOR ANESTHESIA EDUCATION AND RESEARCH (FAER)
FAER is a related organization of the American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA). For over 35 years, FAER has been dedicated to developing the next generation of physician-investigators in anesthesiology. Charitable contributions and support to FAER help fuel the future of anesthesiology through scientific discovery. Funding priorities include: Research, Education, and Training. At the time of this article's publication, FAER has awarded more than $58 million in research grants and programs since 1986. To donate to FAER, visit FAER.org/donate.
Curated by: BH
Last updated by: BH
Date of last update: December 19, 2024
email: [email protected]
site: FAER.org
Join our mailing list
© 2024 FAER Privacy Statement Terms and Conditions
