Dr. Tara McAllister to attend Clinical Practice Research Institute

Dr. Tara McAllister, an assistant professor in the speech-language pathology program, has been chosen to attend ASHA’s 3rd Annual Clinical Practice Research Institute.  The participants to this institute are selected by the Science Advisory Board of the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association.  According to ASHA, this program is designed to "accelerate the generation of clinical practice research [which] is essential to addressing the discipline’s critical need for an expanded and strengthened evidence base to inform federal and state regulatory policies and administrative decisions about funding services for those with communication disorders and to advance clinical practice. " and "… to provide support to individuals who already have their research doctorates (PhD) and are in a position to advance or shift their program of research to focus on topics relevant to surveillance, prevention, identification, diagnosis, assessment, treatment, outcome measurement, quality improvement and/or service delivery."(http://www.asha.org/Research/CPRI/)

In order to apply, Dr. McAllister was required to write a grant proposal describing the clinical research she wants to conduct.  In the first year of the program, 12 participants from all over the country were selected to attend the program.  Last year, in 2010, only six individuals were chosen to participate.  These individuals have come from respected institutions including Purdue University, Syracuse, Syracuse University, University of Texas at Dallas, and the University of Wisconsin.  The overall goal of the program is to assist the participants in preparing a grant proposal for submission to the National Institutes of Health.

The first phase of the Institute will be held at the ASHA National Office, located at 2200 Research Blvd. in Rockville, Maryland, from Wednesday, March 10- Saturday, March 12 2011.  Stipends are awarded to all applicants selected to participate to cover expenses associated with travel and program attendance.

The Institute consists of three phases.

Phase 1:

The first meeting will be March 10–13, 2011. Participants will join Institute Faculty and other invited speakers at the ASHA National Office and focus on the principles, methods and funding mechanisms available to support clinical practice research. A significant amount of time will be spent in smaller groups devoted to developing the grant applications of the Institute participants. In addition, each participant will be assigned a mentor.

Phase 2:

Following the conference, participants will work remotely with their mentor and will be required to complete sections of the grant application on schedule.

Phase 3:

Participants will return to the National Office for a two-day meeting later in the year that will provide an opportunity to receive and generate more input on their applications and discuss unresolved issues with the community of participants and Institute Faculty, and finalize their applications. Invitation to participate in Phase 3 at the National Office is contingent upon making adequate progress on the grant application in Phase 2.