Congratulations to the 2024 Alison Cole, PhD, Mentored Research Training Grant Award Recipient!

November 1, 2024

The Foundation for Anesthesia Education and Research (FAER) is proud to announce Lee Goeddel, MD, MPH, of the Department of Anesthesiology and Critical Care Medicine at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine as the 2024 Alison Cole, PhD, Mentored Research Training Grant (MRTG) Awardee. With the addition of Dr. Goeddel’s $250,000 MRTG, FAER has awarded a total of $2.15 million in research grants in 2024.

“We are pleased to welcome Dr. Goeddel as FAER’s latest grantee and to celebrate his recognition as the second Alison Cole, PhD, Award recipient. It’s always exciting to see the passion and talent shown by Dr. Goeddel from our specialty’s early-career investigators. Thanks to these qualities, we are certain he will thrive during his grant period, and his research in relation to acute kidney injury during cardiac surgery will serve as another important building block in strengthening anesthesiology’s foundation for the future. We look forward to seeing how Dr. Goeddel’s work will enrich knowledge in our specialty and impact patient care in the years to come.”
 - Max B. Kelz, MD, PhD, FAER President, and Dolores B. Njoku, MD, Chair of the FAER Board of Directors

First established in 2023 and to be awarded annually for four years, the Alison Cole, PhD, Award honors the MRTG recipient with the best application score among grantees awarded for the year. Selected grantees are recognized as the Alison Cole Award recipient in FAER materials and communications, and their grant is partially funded by the Alison Cole, PhD, Fund. The funds for this award were raised during a campaign in 2021 to honor the tenure and retirement of Dr. Alison Cole, a former Program Officer at the National Institutes of Health (NIH), celebrated for her broad impact on anesthesiology and its researchers.

Mentored Research Training Grants (MRTG) help physician-investigators develop the skills, preliminary data for subsequent grant applications, and research publications needed to become independent investigators. These grants are eligible to faculty members who have completed their core anesthesiology residency training within the past 10 years and comprise $250,000 in funding over two years.

Dr. Goeddel will begin work on his MRTG, titled “Examining Cardiac Output, Renal Perfusion, and Acute Kidney Injury During Cardiac Surgery Using Urinary Biomarkers of Renal Tubular Injury and Doppler Ultrasound of Renal Vein Blood Flow,” in January 2025, mentored by Chirag Parikh, MBBS, PhD; Karen Bandeen-Roche, PhD; and Charles Brown, MD.

To learn more about Dr. Goeddel’s research, download his project summary here.

“I would like to express my sincere gratitude to FAER, the ASA, and the anesthesiology community for supporting my research and career development. This FAER MRTG award will allow my mentors and me to push the scientific frontier in acute kidney injury during cardiac surgery. 

“As I am an early career investigator, this award will also provide me critical experience and the opportunity to establish my laboratory in the OR. This will enable me to successfully compete for federal NIH funding to address key priorities in our specialty. 

“The more independently funded investigators our specialty has, the stronger the science of our specialty becomes. With fierce commitment, I will push this scientific frontier, I will stoke enthusiasm for the science of our specialty, and I will communicate our discoveries. 

“Lastly, I am honored to be named the 2024 Alison Cole, PhD, Awardee. Dr. Cole was a tireless ally of the science of anesthesiology at the NIH. So much of scientific progress is made through the selfless generosity of others: shaping ideas, infusing enthusiasm, reading proposals instead of sleeping, processing samples after a late OR case, and supporting organizations like FAER who foster research. It is very meaningful to me to receive this award recognizing someone so dedicated to supporting science in our specialty and the researchers carrying it out.

“My success is a testament to the many who have invested in me. This now includes all who read this short note of gratitude.”
 - Lee Goeddel, MD, MPH, 2024 Alison Cole, PhD, Mentored Research Training Grant Award Recipient

Along with celebrating Dr. Goeddel, FAER would like to thank the American Society of Anesthesiologists’ (ASA) Committee on Research for its role in reviewing and scoring FAER grant applications. The committee members possess a wide array of scientific and research expertise, ensuring a thorough and rigorous grant review process.

FAER is also pleased to share information on the funding opportunities available as part of its upcoming Spring 2025 Grant Cycle. Standard FAER grants available grants for the Spring 2025 Cycle include the Mentored Research Training Grant, Research in Education Grant, and Research Fellowship Grant. Applications for the Transition to Independence Grant are also accepted on a rolling basis. See below for more information and links, or visit FAER.org/Grants.

Applications Open: December 1, 2024 - February 15, 2025

Available Grants:

• Mentored Research Training Grant ($250,000 over two years)
• Research in Education Grant ($100,000 over two years)
• Research Fellowship Grant ($75,000 over one year)
• Transition to Independence Grant ($75,000 over one year)

In addition to the grants detailed above, the following co-sponsored grants are also available as part of the Spring 2025 Grant Cycle. Note that a Letter of Intent is required for two of the co-sponsored grants below and must be submitted before interested applicants are invited to submit a full application. Associated deadlines for the Letters of Intent are indicated with their corresponding grant below.

Available Co-Sponsored Grants:

• SOAP-FAER Mentored Research Training Grant ($250,000 over two years)

• APSF-FAER Mentored Research Training Grant ($300,000 over two years)
  Letter of Intent Submission Window: December 1, 2024 – January 1, 2025

• ABA-FAER Research in Education Grant ($100,000 over two years)
  Letter of Intent Submission Window: December 1 – December 31, 2024

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.