As innovators and scientific leaders, the faculty and staff at the University of Colorado Anschutz Department of Medicine Research Office understand that breakthrough discoveries do not occur in a silo; they require years of work and collaboration among researchers across disciplines to translate lab findings into new clinical treatments for patients.
Aiming to advance and expand this pivotal work, the research office launched several initiatives in 2026 aimed at supporting staff, faculty, and trainees while simultaneously continuing annual traditions such as Research Day. These efforts help researchers find mentors and collaborators, hone their skills, grow their portfolio, and share their findings with local, national, and international audiences.
“In the Department of Medicine Research Office, we aim to build an integrated research ecosystem designed to support teams in making discoveries that improve lives,” says Janine Higgins, PhD, the department’s vice chair for research.
A key step to creating a thriving research ecosystem is supporting those early in their career as they navigate the complex challenges of balancing research, educational, and clinical responsibilities. To help them succeed, the research office launched the Early-Stage Investigator (ESI) Connect Program in 2026 to foster mentorship opportunities between junior and senior researchers.
The program includes peer support, access to a centralized virtual resource hub, workshops to build skills like grant writing, educational sessions, and mentorship opportunities with faculty members across the department.
“The ESI program, led by Dr. Mary Weiser-Evans, invites ESIs to connect and learn from each other as well as researchers who have walked in their shoes and succeeded,” Higgins says. “Its vision is to accelerate the connectedness and professional growth of our ESIs.”
As part of this program, there is a multidisciplinary ESI working group composed of nine faculty members in the CU Anschutz Department of Medicine who are seasoned researchers across six divisions: hematology, cardiology, general internal medicine, geriatric medicine, medical oncology, and pulmonary, allergy, and critical care medicine.
Together, they create and host meetings, known as Career Connect sessions, that are designed to address the needs of early-stage researchers. Topics include building a research lab, developing a research identity, and navigating early-career transitions.
“These are not traditional lectures. Instead, experienced faculty join ESIs in a neutral, informal setting for open Q&A and discussion. Conversations are candid and ESI-led, addressing challenges, trade-offs, and strategies that might not be obvious from formal training,” Higgins says. “Participants leave Career Connect sessions with inspiration, practical ideas they can apply immediately, and a clear sense of who to turn to as questions arise in the future.”
Ultimately, the program aims to help ESIs forge their own path to career success.
“At its core, the ESI program is built by and for ESIs,” she says. “That is the value of the ESI program: not abstract information, but actionable guidance, accessible resources, and a strong, connected community of peers moving through a shared career stage.”
Discoveries made at the CU Anschutz Department of Medicine would not be possible without research professionals and administrators.
“Our department’s amazing and committed research staff are the engine that drives our research,” Higgins says.
This year, the research office launched the Department of Medicine CU Research Professionals Summit. Nearly 50 research professionals attended the interactive event, which focused on career development, shared learning, and community building. One of the workshops taught attendees how to reflect on their career goals and communicate their value through storytelling. Other sessions centered on how research cores can fuel new collaborations and strategies to build a strong research team.
“What made the summit distinct wasn’t just the content — it was the ownership behind it,” Higgins says. “The topics had been suggested by research professionals themselves, and that was evident. Attendees leaned in, asked questions, and shared experiences with each other as active contributors.”
She explains the research office received positive feedback from attendees, who communicated that they felt the event was tailored to their needs, recognized their value in the research process, and offered invaluable lessons they could implement in their future work.
Just as the research office continues to grow its services, the office’s impact and scope are also expanding. On April 14, an estimated 190 medical students, fellows, staff, and faculty at CU Anschutz gathered for the department’s annual Research Day — roughly 50 more people than last year.
The keynote speaker was Frank Scheer, PhD, a professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School and senior neuroscientist at Brigham and Women’s Hospital, where he is also the co-founder and director of the Medical Chronobiology Program. He described how circadian biology shapes cardiometabolic health, an area of research that is defining how scientists understand disease risk in modern life.
Faculty from various divisions in the CU Anschutz Department of Medicine also took the stage to share their research. Topics included new insights on the importance of airway epithelia to disease prevention, characterizing specific immune cells that may promote cardiac tissue repair, time-restricted eating for improved weight loss in adults, and better approaches to diagnostic test interpretation in clinical care settings.
A standout feature of the event for many attendees was the seven “lightning talks,” where graduate students, fellows, and research professionals faced the challenge of describing their work in under five minutes. From discussing lab discoveries to health outcomes research, presentations showcased the early-stage researchers’ breadth of work.
“On the surface, these were seemingly disparate presentations,” Higgins says. “However, they all encompassed the same idea: that scientific discovery leads to better health and patient care.”