Mission
To maximize the impact of the Penn Center for AIDS Research in advancing innovative research addressing key needs in HIV/AIDS, the Penn CFAR has created two Scientific Working Groups (SWGs) that build on current strengths combined with clear yet-untapped opportunities for synergy, collaboration, and novel multidisciplinary approaches. By taking a proactive leadership role to galvanize and coordinate research in these areas, the SWGs will:
- Create interdisciplinary programs through new collaborations leading to synergy and novel approaches to key issues;
- Engage established investigators in related fields who have not previously worked on HIV/AIDS by providing both an outreach mechanism and a working group structure in which they can collaborate to pursue studies;
- Establish mentoring relationships for junior investigators to both maximize the opportunity for their success as well as harness the creativity of new perspectives;
- Identify critical support needed from CFAR Cores that will inform and guide new service development, help leverage resources directed at these needs, and utilize Core resources.
The Penn SWGs will rely heavily on CFAR Basic and Clinical Cores for support, as well as the Developmental Core to prioritize SWG initiatives for Pilot funding (in concert with the Administrative Core and Executive Committee oversight) and collaborative mentoring of new investigators. The SWGs are designed to be forward-looking and dynamic, and as SWG goals are met the SWGs will evolve to enable new areas of strategic priority and opportunity to be emphasized.