School of Health Professions- Associate Professor/Professor - Nutrition Sciences

at  University of Alabama at Birmingham

JOB DESCRIPTION

The University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB or University) seeks an exceptional leader and scientist to serve as its next Director of the Diabetes Research Center (DRC or Center). UAB is an exciting place to be for a health science and research leader. The University has one of the nation’s largest academic health science centers – comprising the schools of medicine, dentistry, optometry, nursing, health professions, and public health, as well as the UAB Health System – the country’s third largest public hospital system. The University’s R1 status speaks to the institution’s commitment to high-impact research and innovation. UAB received more than $774 million in research grants and extramural awards in FY2023, keeping UAB in the top one percent of all NIH-funded institutions, including private, public, and international organizations. UAB aims to continue its research success, charting a path to $1 billion in research expenditures.
The Center was established in 2008 by Dr. W. Timothy Garvey as the University of Alabama Diabetes Research and Training Center and evolved into the DRC in 2013. The DRC is housed within the School of Health Professions (SHP or School) and is a multidisciplinary operation with over 150 investigators from UAB’s schools of health profession, medicine, and public health. The Center operates in collaboration with the UAB Comprehensive Diabetes Center to promote excellence in diabetes research and patient care. Situated at the epicenter of the ‘Diabetes Belt’ and marked by the highest rates of diabetes in the United States, the UAB DRC is the sole National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK)-funded DRC in the southernmost United States. In June 2023, the DRC received news that its competitive grant had been renewed for another five years.
The Director will report to Dr. Barbara Gower, the newly appointed chair of the Department of Nutrition Sciences, and join one of the largest and most well-respected health professions schools in the nation during a period of growth and momentum. The SHP is undergoing a $10-million renovation to its Webb Nutrition Sciences Building, including the addition of a state-of-the-art metabolic kitchen and indirect calorimetry suite.
In this key role, the Director will be a visible leader on campus, promoting and steering diabetes research initiatives and helping to develop the next generation of researchers focused on diabetes. The successful Director will bring experience leading a robust research portfolio and have a track record of success in securing competitive federal grants, mentorship, and partnership development. The Director must have generosity of spirit in collaborating with and organizing others around the DRC’s mission and strategic goals, the ability to strategically steward resources, and a keen eye for innovative research ideas. Minimum qualifications include an MD, MD/PhD, or PhD in a relevant field and established research in a diabetes-related area.
The University of Alabama at Birmingham has retained Isaacson, Miller, a national executive search firm, to assist in recruiting the Diabetes Research Center Director. Inquiries, nominations, and applications should be directed to the firm as indicated at the end of this document.

REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS

Minimum qualifications include a medical degree or a doctoral degree and established research in a diabetes-related area.

PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS

Posting Detail Information

While no one individual will necessarily embody every quality, the successful Director will bring many of the following professional and personal qualifications:

• Significant and consistent record as a funded investigator, ideally including human endocrinology and metabolism
• Leadership and support of mentorship programs that develop and guide faculty; a natural ability and desire to motivate and facilitate research independence of early-career investigators
• Insight and judgment to identify the most important and pressing basic and translational questions in diabetes research, whose answers will propel the field forward
• Engagement with research centers through active collaboration, direct contribution, or leadership
• Intellectual curiosity and an appreciation for the range of approaches, methodologies, and disciplines that can inform the work of investigators connected with the DRC
• Experience with investigator recruitment and retentio

Collaborative interpersonal and relational skills and the ability to connect research from across fields

• A commitment to the development of a professional environment that supports access and opportunity, respect for individuality, and a commitment to promoting inclusive excellence.
• An MD, MD/PhD, or PhD in a related field; rank will be commensurate with experienc

The Director of the DRC will lead the promotion of diabetes research. This includes directing the Center’s enrichment program, recruiting and mentoring investigators, overseeing the Center’s collaborative research efforts, and supporting the pilot and feasibility program. As the Center’s leader, the Director will be entrusted with administrative and fiscal management, including compliance related to the grant. At UAB, the Director serves as a Council of Center Directors member – a governance body for University-Wide Interdisciplinary Research Centers. The Director also represents the Center and the university at annual strategic planning meetings for all Diabetes Research Center directors.

While no one individual will necessarily embody every quality, the successful Director will bring many of the following professional and personal qualifications:

• Significant and consistent record as a funded investigator, ideally including human endocrinology and metabolism
• Leadership and support of mentorship programs that develop and guide faculty; a natural ability and desire to motivate and facilitate research independence of early-career investigators
• Insight and judgment to identify the most important and pressing basic and translational questions in diabetes research, whose answers will propel the field forward
• Engagement with research centers through active collaboration, direct contribution, or leadership
• Intellectual curiosity and an appreciation for the range of approaches, methodologies, and disciplines that can inform the work of investigators connected with the DRC
• Experience with investigator recruitment and retention

Collaborative interpersonal and relational skills and the ability to connect research from across fields

• A commitment to the development of a professional environment that supports access and opportunity, respect for individuality, and a commitment to promoting inclusive excellence.
• An MD, MD/PhD, or PhD in a related field; rank will be commensurate with experience