What is the Young Investigator Fellowship?
Designed to bolster young, postdoctoral researchers by pairing them with existing, proven research teams, the Young Investigator Fellowship aims to propel the careers of awardees, enabling them to apply for additional grants or faculty positions.
The fellowship provides funding for collaborative, dynamic teams of multidisciplinary research groups, from across departments, colleges, and universities, that strategically leverage the use of additional personnel to empower high-impact, translational, and exploratory biomedical device research.
For each team’s fellowship project, the lead principal investigator must be the lead on an active, externally funded multidisciplinary research initiative with three or more team members. In addition, they are required to have submitted two or more invention disclosures in the last 12 months. Teams must also interact with the Fischell Foundry on commercial translation.
By funding successful teams, the program minimizes risk in the assessment phase of device development. It also enables more successful translational grant proposals, such as R33, NIH Catalyze, NSF Convergence, NSF TIP, NIIMBL, and FDA grants, along with Maryland Economic Development Grants (MII Grant and MSC).
The institute awarded its first round of Young Investigator Fellowships in 2021, worth $150,000. Since then, awardees have garnered $4.8 million in follow-up grants.
2024 Awarded Teams
Goal: Develop a new technology platform for advanced bioaerosol analysis. The technology will combine bioaerosol capture and virus particle detection in an integrated system designed to enable the continuous monitoring of airborne pathogens as part of a broader effort to reduce the transmission of respiratory disease within indoor environments.
Team members:
- Kevin Daniels, associate professor, Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering
- Don DeVoe, professor, Department of Mechanical Engineering
- Gregg Duncan, associate professor, Fischell Department of Bioengineering
- Donald Milton, professor, Department of Global, Environmental, and Occupational Health (GEOH)
- Margaret Scull, associate professor, Department of Cell Biology and Molecular Genetics
- Jelena Srebric, associate professor, Department of Mechanical Engineering
- Proma Bhattacharya, postdoctoral research associate, Department of Mechanical Engineering
- Taj Yeruva, postdoctoral research associate, Fischell Department of Bioengineering
Goal: Develop an at-home test kit that will enable women to screen for markers of preterm birth in the comfort of their own homes. The kit will include a diaphragm-like mucus collection device and a lateral flow assay, similar to how at-home COVID-19 test kits work.
Team members:
- Katharina Maisel, associate professor, Fischell Department of Bioengineering
- Jenna Mueller, assistant professor, Fischell Department of Bioengineering
- Hannah Zierden, assistant professor, Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering
Goal: Create novel "soft robotic" guidewires and microcatheters that can be actively steered inside the body during neurosurgical procedures as an alternative to the existing, fixed designs of guidewires and microcatheters, which are challenging to maneuver through blood vessels.
Team members:
- Ryan Sochol, associate professor, Department of Mechanical Engineering
- Eleonora Tubaldi, assistant professor, Department of Mechanical Engineering
- Miroslaw Janowski, professor, Department of Diagnostic Radiology and Nuclear Medicine, University of Maryland School of Medicine.
Read more about the 2024 cohort Learn more about the fellowship and 2024 projects