Associate Professor of Sociology Dawn Carr has been selected for a new pilot program instituted by the FSU Office of Research designed to facilitate interdisciplinary research and streamline the processes for conducting research at the university.

Carr was selected for the Faculty Fellows Program on the basis of her proposal to develop a framework for increasing interdisciplinary scholarship at FSU. Her aim is to develop infrastructure and an initial project to catalyze expertise in aging across the university’s Pepper Institute on Aging and Public Policy, Claude Pepper Center and Institute for Successful Longevity (ISL), all of them dedicated to aging issues.

Carr’s proposed project seeks to bolster the reputation, rank, grant-getting capacity and policy relevance of aging research carried out in multiple disciplines across FSU.

“As a social gerontologist, I have learned that multidisciplinary research teams are uniquely positioned to address complex problems,” said Carr, who is a faculty associate of the Pepper Institute and affiliated with ISL. “Since arriving at FSU, I have strategically developed professional networks with faculty across the university that have resulted in several grant-related projects, but absent a unifying infrastructure from which to cultivate longer-term goals for aging research, it has been difficult to build momentum across campus.”

She also noted that there have been no clear strategies linking research efforts to policy-related goals for older adults in Florida.

“With Florida boasting more than 4 million adults over age 65, leveraging FSU’s research talent and geographic location to address challenges concerning our older population should be a key priority for the university,” she said.

Carr is one of three faculty members chosen for the Office of Research fellowship. Three other faculty members will participate in the program under the auspices of the Office of Faculty Development and Advancement pursuing strategies to increase hiring, retention and advancement of diverse faculty and developing comprehensive mentoring programs.