Now Accepting Nominations: 2026 W. Fred Taylor PhD Award for Outstanding Contributions to the NIH IDeA Program

Dear IDeA Community,

The process for accepting nominations for the 2026 W. Fred Taylor Award for Outstanding Contributions to the IDeA Program is now underway. This award honors the commitment and service of W. Fred Taylor, PhD, whose NIH service focused on expanding opportunities for students, faculty and institutions in states and territories that have had historically low levels of NIH funding for biomedical research. Details about the award and guidelines for the nomination process are below.

Please note that the nomination period will close on January 6, 2026 at 5 pm EST, to ensure adequate time for committee deliberation and advance notification of the recipient.

Many thanks,

Jessica Molesworth
Executive Director
EPSCoR/IDeA Foundation

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W. Fred Taylor PhD Award for Outstanding Contributions to the NIH IDeA Program Nomination Guidelines

This annual award is given by the EPSCoR/IDeA Coalition and Foundation Boards. It is intended to recognize an individual who has contributed significantly to enhancing the impact of the NIH Institutional Development Award (IDeA) Program either regionally or nationally. The award is intended to honor the commitment of Dr. W. Fred Taylor during his 20 years of service at NIH to expand opportunities for students, faculty and institutions in states and territories that have had historically low levels of NIH funding for biomedical research.

Past or current principal investigators and other key personnel of IDeA Program grants as well as institutional administrative officials (e.g., Presidents, Provosts, Vice Presidents/Vice Chancellors/Vice Provosts for Research), who have made outstanding contributions to advance IDeA Program initiatives either regionally or nationally are eligible. Current federal employees are not eligible for consideration.

A selection committee composed of members of the EPSCoR/IDeA Coalition and Foundation Boards is responsible for soliciting nominations and selecting the award recipient. The Committee members include the Chairs of the EPSCoR/IDeA Coalition and EPSCoR/IDeA Foundation as well as Board members with significant knowledge of the IDeA program.

The selection committee welcomes nominations from all sources, but especially from IDeA Program grantees, institutional officials in IDeA states, and NIGMS staff. Additionally, the Nomination and Selection Committee will hold the applications received in 2025 for consideration through November 2029.

1. Nomination materials should include:
   • A concise letter of nomination on the qualifications of the nominee, as well as contact information for the nominee;
   • A comprehensive and up-to-date curriculum vitae of the nominee; and
   • A minimum of two, and a maximum of five, letters of endorsement.
     
2. We ask that the nominee collects the nomination letters and CV and sends the nomination packet as one PDF document. All nomination materials must be submitted in electronic form and directed to Jessica Molesworth at jmolesworth@eifdc.org
   
3. For the 2025 W. Fred Taylor PhD Award, the nomination period will close on January 6, 2026 at 5 pm EST, to insure adequate time for committee deliberation and advance notification of the recipient.
4. Assuming a nominee is still eligible for consideration, nominators can update the nomination materials they previously submitted to reflect any changes or additional information they think it is important to share with the Nomination and Selection Committee. Additional letters of recommendation are permitted but not necessary.
   
5. Please note that a candidate’s nomination materials need to clearly identify how the nominee has had a regional or national impact. If an application only emphasizes the impact a nominee has had in their state, it will be rated lower than other applications.
   

The W. Fred Taylor PhD Award consists of a $5,000 honorarium and an engraved crystal item. The award recipient is recognized at the annual EPSCoR/IDeA Coalition and Foundation Annual Meeting (February 23, 2026). The EPSCoR/IDeA Coalition and EPSCoR/IDeA Foundation will work with the recipient’s institution to prepare a press release for wider distribution.

• Marian McCord, Ph.D., EPSCoR/IDeA Coalition Board Chair
• Kirk Dombrowski, Ph.D., EPSCoR/IDeA Foundation Board Chair
• Mridul Gautam, Ph.D., EPSCoR/IDeA Coalition Board Member
• Prakash Nagarkatti, Ph.D., EPSCoR/IDeA Foundation Board Member
• Larry Cornett, Ph.D., EPSCoR/IDeA Foundation Board Member
• Shelley Lusetti, Ph.D., EPSCoR/IDeA Coalition Board Member
• Dean Madden, Ph.D., EPSCoR/IDeA Foundation Board Member
• Alan Tackett, Ph.D., Incoming NAIPI President
• Jessica Molesworth, EPSCoR/IDeA Foundation Executive Director