Our Members
The Center for Environmental Health and Susceptibility (CEHS) maintains a diverse and dynamic membership including faculty in Epidemiology, Biostatistics, Environmental Sciences and Engineering, Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, Pediatrics, Genetics, Medicine, and the Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center, among other University departments. CEHS members share common interests in how the environment affects people in order to promote healthier lives. As outlined by NIEHS, this includes research aimed at discovering and explaining how factors including chemical, physical, synthetic, and infectious agents, social stressors, diet and medications, and our own microbiomes, among others, affect biological systems.
Benefits of CEHS Membership
Scientific Concierge Services & Assistance with Study Design
CEHS provides valuable services to members including assistance with study design, project management, IRB, sample analysis, and use of equipment for projects related to environmental health/susceptibility. CEHS supports Scientific Facility Cores in the areas of Molecular Analysis and Statistical Support, and Translational Research Support.
Scientific Graphic Design Services: Biorender
BioRender is an online app used to create, edit, and collaborate on scientific diagrams, and illustrations. It offers a large library of over 40,000 icons to use in the creation of scientific posters, presentations, publications, and more. Take a quick video tour to see how BioRender works. If you are interested in using BioRender for a current project, please complete this BioRender access request form.
Annual Funding Opportunities
CEHS issues requests for applications for three types of awards annually:
- Standard Pilot Projects – Traditionally, these proposals are projects submitted by a single investigator.
- Interdisciplinary Pilot Projects – These are projects proposed by a team of interdisciplinary investigators.
- Rapid Response Seed Projects (pending availability) – Rapid response seed funds are used to expedite research in CEHS-related research areas, small amount of money for very short-term projects. Funds are intended to be used in the same year.
To learn more about the Pilot Projects Program, visit the CEHS Pilot Projects Page.
Community Connections
CEHS Members have access to expert consultation and technical assistance related to community engagement across the state.
CEHS Member Expectations
1. Acknowledging NIH-Supported Research
We request that researchers acknowledge the CEHS Grant number P30ES010126 in all publications that fit into any of the following cases:
- All relevant publications from CEHS Members supported by Center funds
- All publications derived from pilot projects funded by the CEHS
- All publications from CEHS Members and non-member collaborators whenever a CEHS Facility Core resource was utilized, and
- All publications from CEHS Members and non-member collaborators whenever the intellectual climate of the Center contributed to the scientific development of the author(s), project, and/or article.
The citation to be included in the publications should be:
“Research reported in this publication was supported by the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences of the National Institutes of Health under award number P30ES010126 University of North Carolina Center for Environmental Health and Susceptibility. The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the National Institutes of Health.”
2. Manuscripts citing CEHS, and any other NIH grant, must be compliant with the NIH Public Access Policy, a process that should start once your paper has been accepted for publication; see details in the following link: http://guides.lib.unc.edu/NIHPublicAccess
3. To maintain membership status, CEHS members are also encouraged to develop/maintain funded research in an area of relevance to the Center’s mission; show evidence of interdisciplinary collaboration in the form of grants, manuscripts, shared mentoring of graduate students, abstracts, posters, and other projects; attend Center-wide seminars and meetings; submit pilot project proposals in response to Center RFAs; and collaborate with the Community Engagement Core, when appropriate, to share environmental health sciences information with public health professionals and other community audiences.
Center membership is reviewed annually by the CEHS Internal Advisory Committee. Reappointment is based on the following factors:
- A sustained publication record in areas consistent with the mission of the Center
- Publications with other Center members
- Sustained peer-review grant support in areas consistent with the mission of the Center
- Participation in Center activities (retreats, seminars)
- Number of trainees participating in the investigators research program
- Use of Facility Cores
- Meaningful participation in or assistance with community outreach and engagement activities
How to Apply
CEHS membership criteria include research interests relevant to CEHS goals, current or recent funding (established investigators), or potential for funding (junior investigators). Any member of the standing faculty at the University of North Carolina – Chapel Hill is eligible to become a member of CEHS. To be appointed, the faculty member must: a) have an existing or developing research theme in environmental health sciences or a research program that fits the mission of the Center; (b) have peer-reviewed external funding and a publication record in their area of interest; and/or (c) serve as a technical leader or advisor for Center members and staff.
If you are interested in applying for CEHS Membership, send an email to Michael Sanderson (michael_sanderson@unc.edu) that includes your NIH Biosketch and a cover letter describing your interests in environmental health. Membership requests are review by the CEHS Internal Advisory Committee as they are received. Applicants will be notified of their status via email.
