JACKSON – Jackson State University has received a 10-year, $14.5 million federal contract to continue its Jackson Heart Study Graduate Training and Education Center, the university announced Tuesday.
The award comes from the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute and the National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities, both part of the National Institutes of Health. University officials said the funding renews Jackson State’s role in the long-running Jackson Heart Study collaboration, which they describe as the largest investigation of cardiovascular disease in African Americans.
Jackson State said it has received more than $25 million in NIH funding related to the study since 2013.
Interim President Denise Jones Gregory said the new award reflects the university’s ability to secure major federal research partnerships and support health outcomes for families.
Heart disease remains a leading cause of death in the United States, and African Americans face higher rates, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The university said related conditions, including hypertension, obesity and diabetes, also disproportionately affect Black communities and contribute to cardiovascular risk.
Launched in 1998, the Jackson Heart Study has followed more than 5,300 participants ages 34 to 85 in the Jackson metropolitan area, building long-term health data and biological samples used for research and prevention efforts. The program marked a 25-year milestone last year tied to its first participant clinical exam in 2000.
The Graduate Training and Education Center at Jackson State was established in 2013 to prepare graduate students for careers in biomedical and public health sciences, with an emphasis on disease prevention and health promotion in underserved communities.
Dr. Marinelle Payton, principal investigator of the center at Jackson State, said the renewed funding will help train future public health leaders to translate cardiovascular research into prevention strategies and earlier care.
Dr. Almesha Campbell, the university’s vice president for research and economic development, said the award strengthens Jackson State’s research role while expanding workforce development focused on health disparities.
Partner institutions in the Jackson Heart Study collaboration include the University of Mississippi Medical Center, Tougaloo College, the University of Southern Mississippi, Wake Forest University and the G.A. Carmichael Family Health Center.
(Written from a press release from The LEPR Agency)
