For nearly two decades, some of the most promising undergraduates from universities across the country have traveled to the Louis de la Parte Florida Mental Health Institute (FMHI) at the 黑料网吃瓜爆料 for an opportunity to hone their research skills as part of the Summer Research Institute (SRI@FMHI).
During the highly selective 11-week program, students gain experience with Institutional Review Boards practices, attend research and professional development seminars, participate in a community rotation to become familiar with services in their area of interest, and conduct an independent research project with guidance from a distinguished faculty mentor.
鈥淚 think we have really made a difference in some of these students鈥� lives,鈥� said Kathleen Moore, PhD, executive director of FMHI. 鈥淲e connect students with mentors and really encourage them to work together over time. So, they鈥檙e able to develop those relationships and benefit from our mentors鈥� expertise throughout their careers.鈥�
Seventy-five percent of the program's alums have enrolled in advanced graduate programs. SRI@FMHI scholars have published 275 articles in peer-reviewed journals and completed more than 600 presentations at state, regional and national conferences.
"We started the SRI@FMHI in 2005 to provide an intense mentored research experience, from conceptualization to dissemination of findings, to start training the next generation of behavioral health scientists even before they pursued graduate school," said Paul Stiles, PhD, JD, associate professor in USF鈥檚 Department of Mental Health Law and Policy, who has been involved with SRI@FMHI since its inception as founding principal investigator on the program's initial grants and director of SRI@FMHI for more than a dozen years. "Over the years we鈥檝e provided these opportunities to well over 200 young scholars, many who have gone on to make significant contributions as graduate students and beyond."
The final group of scholars in the SRI@FMHI program in 2024 includes 13 students chosen from top universities across nine states. As they work toward completing the program, we reached out to graduates of previous cohorts to find out, "where are you now?"
Zena Rodill
2023 SRI@FMHI cohort
Zena Rodill graduated from 黑料网吃瓜爆料in fall 2023 magna cum laude with a Bachelor of Science in behavioral healthcare. She was hired by the university in spring 2024 as a research student working under the supervision of Kathleen Moore, PhD and Nik Lampe, PhD. In fall 2024, she will begin her doctoral journey in USF's PhD in behavioral and community sciences program.
Read more about Zena Rodill's SRI@FMHI experience.
Rodill's research topic during the SRI@FMHI program was parent perspectives on co-occurring cannabis use and mental health symptoms, such as psychosis, among their young adult sons.
"I grew interested in researching co-occurring disorders as there are inevitable underlying factors among mental health experiences, such as substance use, trauma, physical health, social systems, etc.," said Rodill. "I鈥檓 inspired to address a multitude of factors that contribute to mental health in order to prevent minimal access and increased severity of these conditions as well as promote safety, well-being, informed autonomy in the community."
Rodill says she feels prepared for graduate school because of the experience she gained conducting and presenting research as an undergraduate student and as part of her student research assistant job, along with the training, faculty mentorships, presentation practice, and exposure to the manuscript writing process that SRI@FMHI offered.
"The SRI program made me aware of the passion I have for community involvement in research and writing. I didn't think a doctoral program was in my future because of imposter syndrome and limited funding for my education, but Summer Research Institute mentors Dr. Kathleen Moore and Dr. Khary Rigg truly inspired me and other students to give it a shot and apply to graduate programs that may have seemed beyond us to fulfill our career goals in becoming professional researchers."
Brooke Haney
2021 SRI@FMHI cohort
Brooke Haney is a second-year student in USF's PhD in behavioral and community sciences program and returned to SRI@FMHI this year as a mentor. She has worked with the problem solving courts to share her research with judges and administrative officials in the court system, where she hopes to enact positive change.