Research

SRI@FHMI

Intensive program for undergraduates interested in substance use and co-occurring disorder

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The application form and access to upload offical/unoffical transcripts may be obtained at https://usf.az1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_0OoqfWp5SUpWxW6 

A letter of recommendation from a faculty member is required by uploading to
https://usf.az1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_9Fi1uIjRMxEfGpU 

Application Deadline is March 10, 2024 at 11:59pm.

The Louis de la Parte Florida Mental Health Institute (FMHI) at the University of South Florida is dedicated to research and education related to substance use and co-occurring disorders. FMHI invites undergraduate students to apply for a highly selective Summer Research Institute that is funded by the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA).

SRI@FMHI

The Summer Research Institute (SRI@FMHI) is designed for students interested in building their research skills within the context of substance use and co-occurring disorders to help them prepare for a Senior Thesis and/or graduate school.

Dates:

The SRI@FMHI is an 11-week in-person program from May 23, 2024 to August 01, 2024.

Program Structure:

The SRI@FMHI consists of four components: an independent research project conducted with guidance from a distinguished faculty mentor; research seminars; professional development seminars; and skill-building workshops. The research seminars will complement the research that students are conducting with their faculty mentors. Throughout the 11-week period, students will work intensively with faculty mentors on their research projects. In addition, students will gain experience with research ethics, IRB practices, and will participate in a community rotation to gain experience with substance use services in an area related to their research projects.

Students will be required to write a research report describing their research project, present the report at a Research Symposium and Poster Session, and submit the completed paper for consideration at an Undergraduate Research Conference or Symposium. Because of the intensity of the summer program, students must participate on a full-time basis and may not be employed or attend other classes during the 11-week program.

Student Application and Selection Process:

Applications must be received no later than March 10, 2024. Students accepted to the program should be notified by March 18, 2024.

Up to 12 students will be selected for the SRI@FMHI. Because each SRI Scholar will be matched with a faculty mentor, primary consideration will be given to those applicants whose area of interest is closely aligned with the expertise of a faculty member who is available to provide mentorship during the summer. Typically, students will be considered for the program if they have begun coursework in their academic major, completed a minimum of 60 hours of college coursework, and have an expected graduation date no earlier than December 2024. Courses in statistics and research methodology are required to be eligible.

Student Support:

All students who are accepted for the program will receive the following benefits:

  • $4,400 research stipend
  • Up to $1,000 funding available to support the research project and other research related expenses
  • Students are responsible for paying for the cost of housing and food. On-campus housing is available at USF.

Potential Faculty Mentors:

George Burruss, Ph.D. (Criminology)  focuses on criminal justice organizations, including policing, homeland security, and juvenile courts. Also, he studies the causes and correlates of offending and victimization in cyberspace, including how law enforcement and cybersecurity professionals respond to cybercrime.

Linda Callejas, Ph.D. (Child & Family Studies) focuses on research and evaluation activities for behavioral health disparities and use of community-based support interventions that increase engagement in underserved communities.

Judith Biesen, Ph.D. (Mental Health Law & Policy) focuses on the processes that underlie the co-occurrence of relationship dysfunction and behavioral challenges in underserved populations, as well as the contexts within which they co-occur, and that contribute to their co-occurrence. 

Nik Lampe, Ph.D. (Mental Health Law & Policy) focuses on the behavioral health disparities of LGBTQIA+ aging populations and the health of diverse older adults living with dementia and their family care partners.

Chae Jaynes, Ph.D. (Criminology) focuses on offender decision-making from a rational choice perspective. Specifically, focusing on evaluating the role of employment in offender decision-making, and exploring how perceptions of legitimacy influence choice within policing and courtroom contexts.

Ji-Young Lee, Ph.D. (Mental Health Law and Policy) current research aims to understand social-contexual factors to being a dual minority and its relationship with HIV-related outcomes, such as substance use, mental health, and sexual risk, among culturally and racially diverse sexual minority men. 

Kristin Kosyluk, Ph.D. (Mental Health Law and Policy) primarily researching issues related to mental illness and psychiatric disability, with a special interest in social justice issues and stigma. Dr. Kosyluk has served as the lead scientific evaluation for the storytelling organization This Is My Brave, which empowers individuals to break down stigma through sharing stories of their lived experience.

Oliver Massey, Ph.D. (Child & Family Studies) examines substance abuse prevention and treatment, with emphasis on implementation of evidence-based practices, and behavioral health services in schools.

Kathleen Moore, Ph.D. (Mental Health Law & Policy) conducts research on co-occurring mental health and substance use disorders with emphasis on treatment drug courts.

Richard Moule, Ph.D. (Criminology)  focuses his research on criminological theory, influence of technology on social life, and perceptual and micro-social dimensions of crime and crime control. 

Ráchael Powers, Ph.D. (Criminology) work focuses on violent victimization, with a focus on gender-based violence (IPV, sexual assault), hate crime, and bystander behavior. Much of her recent work centers on victim and bystander agency, what victims and bystanders do during and after victimization, including the use of the criminal justice system. 

Jessica Rice, Ph.D. (Child & Family Studies) focuses on psychiatric hospitalization among youth, child and adolescent trauma, and embedding trauma-informed care treatment practices into mental and behavioral health for young people. 

Khary Rigg, Ph.D. (Mental Health Law & Policy) is focused on understanding drugs and the people who use them. A common theme throughout his research is a concern for the health and well-being of people with addictive disorders. His research interests include drug prevention, treatment, harm reduction, opioid addition, drug use in nightlife settings, and overdose prevention.

Svetlana Yampolskaya, Ph.D. (Child and Family Studies) is interested in research related to prevention adverse outcomes for children in the child welfare system as well as advanced analytical and methodological approaches.

Sponsors:

National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA)