Office of the Scientific Director

There are two components to the NHLBI Animal Program Division that work together to support the NHLBI research program: Animal Program and the Animal Surgery & Resources (ASR) Core. Animal Program operations are directly overseen by Dr. James “Buster” Hawkins. It provides care and technical services for NHLBI research animals including: husbandry, purchasing, health monitoring, animal import and export, mouse rederivation and cryopreservation services. It also provides support for NHLBI animals in other NIH facilities. The ASR services for NHLBI research animals include animal model development, surgery, surgical support, training, post-operative care, and technical services such as radiography, blood and tissue collection.

The Office of Intramural Management (OIM) plans, directs, coordinates, and provides comprehensive administrative and management support services for the DIR. In addition, OIM provides technical and advisory services in financial management, data systems, human resources, acquisitions, facility management, travel services, property management to ensure the efficient and effective implementation and operation of programs. OIM also develops policies, guidelines, and procedures on matters relating to administrative management and disseminates to staff. OIM also provides acquisition support (orders above $3,501) and facility management to the NHLBI Extramural programs and the Office of the Director.

The Office of Education is dedicated to promoting the success of all NHLBI scientists, both as trainees and as mentors of trainees. Specialized programs provide research training for high school students, college students, graduate and medical students, postdoctoral fellows, and clinical fellows. The Office provides mechanisms for trainees to learn each of the skills required for success in their chosen field. NHLBI is committed to improving the representation of underrepresented groups, including minorities, women, and scientists with disabilities, in the mainstream of basic and clinical research. Opportunities include:

• Summer Research Programs – Allows high school, college, graduate, medical, and dental school students to perform summer internships at the NHLBI.
• Postbaccalaurate Research - Provides opportunities for recent college graduates to spend a year engaged in biomedical research in an NHLBI laboratory.
• Graduate Training at NHLBI – Allows graduate students to do their research in NHLBI laboratories and get their Ph.D. from one of several universities through the NIH Graduate Partnership Program.
• Postdoctoral Research Training - Prepares recent Ph.D. or M.D. graduates for careers in academia, government, or industry.
• Programs for Underrepresented Groups - Offers opportunities for underrepresented undergraduate and graduate students, as well as postbaccalaureates, to receive training in fundamental biomedical sciences and clinical research disciplines at the NHLBI.
• Hematology Clinical Training - Provides a strong grounding in basic clinical hematology and oncology as well as providing a comprehensive introduction to clinical and laboratory-based research.

The Office of Technology Transfer and Development’s primary mission is to enable researchers within the NHLBI DIR to interact more effectively with their counterparts in the private sector and academia. Its aim is to establish collaborative relationships that further develop existing technologies; facilitate the sharing of technologies with outside laboratories; and create innovative technologies in collaboration with others. The Office’s ultimate goal is to benefit the public health in a variety of basic, translational, and clinical areas, including imaging, diagnostics, regenerative medicine, genetics/genomics, developmental biology, cellular and gene therapy, and cell and molecular biology relating to heart, lung, blood, and sleep disorders and diseases.

The Scientific Information Office works with investigators, core facility heads, and all of DIR to strategically determine their computing needs, and it develops short-term and long-term plans to meet these needs. The Office is responsible for researching, securing, custom designing, and applying cutting- edge IT solutions, products and support to facilitate a variety of biomedical computing needs ranging from computations and data storage to support in the clinical setting. In addition, the Office collaborates with sources outside the DIR, including the Center for Biomedical Informatics within the Office of the Director, NHLBI, the Center for Information Technology, NIH, and the Department of Clinical Research Informatics in the NIH Clinical Center, as well as outside vendors. The Scientific Information Officer is directly responsible for representing the IT interests of the DIR to NHLBI and NIH-wide committees and workgroups, and collaborates broadly across the organization with basic and clinical researchers.