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Dillard Receives $6.8m NIH Grant To Partner With LSU for Minority Health Disparities Research Center
Joint Project Will Promote Minority Participation in Clinical Trials, Develop More Minority Health Professionals

The National Institutes of Health has announced an award of $6.8 million in grant funds to Dillard University and LSU Health Sciences Center for a Minority Health and Health Disparities Research Center in New Orleans.

University President Dr. Marvalene Hughes said Dillard is honored to be at the forefront of this vital research. “In order to find a cure for diseases that disproportionately afflict minority communities, we must have higher minority participation in clinical trials,” Dr. Hughes said. “ If we want to reduce the high rates of asthma, diabetes, hypertension and other diseases that plague our community, clinical trials are the fastest and best ways to find treatments that work,” she said.

Dr. Larry H. Hollier, Chancellor of the LSU Health Sciences Center, New Orleans, agreed. “The LSU Health Sciences Center provides healthcare for more minorities than any other facility in the state. Through our nine public hospitals, clinics and our minority-based Community Clinical Oncology Program, we are in a unique position to see what’s going on at the ground level,” he said. “We have an abundance of patients with debilitating chronic conditions, and a shortage of minority clinical researchers and investigators. Moving forward, we must change that equation,” he said.

The term, minority health disparities, refers to inequalities in the quality of health and health care available to under-served and minority populations. In this country, Latinos, African Americans, Asian Americans and Native Americans have a higher incidence of chronic diseases and poor health than the majority population. Compared to White Americans, African Americans have a 10% higher incidence of cancer, and Latinos have approximately twice the risk of developing diabetes. Minorities also have higher rates of cardiovascular disease and infant mortality. A recent study of 20,000 cancer patients in the United states found African Americans are less likely than European Americans to survive breast, prostate and ovarian cancer even when given equal care.

"Research suggests biology may factor into the high rates of some diseases in minority populations,” said Dr. John J. Estrada, Associate Director of Clinical and Translational Research at the Stanley S. Scott Cancer Center at LSU Health Sciences Center New Orleans. Estrada and Dr. Betty Dennis, Dean of Dillard University’s Division of Nursing, will serve as Directors of the Minority Health and Health Disparities Research Center housed at Dillard. Estrada said women and minorities participate less in clinical research and enroll less in clinical trials such as cancer trials. “This center will contribute to more active participation of these groups in order to reduce this major health inequality,” he said.

“This is an exciting opportunity for Dillard,” said Dr. Betty Dennis. “We will be able to partner with communities to better understand the role of biological as well as socio-cultural determinates that factor into health inequalities,” she said.

The Minority Health Disparities Research Center will rebuild and create new infrastructure at Dillard to conduct integrated research, training and community engagement. The goal is to improve the health of underserved and minority populations in New Orleans and the surrounding regions. The center will promote the participation of women and minorities in clinical research and clinical trials, educate undergraduate students in health disparities research and outreach, train minorities as biomedical investigators and research nurses able to conduct clinical trials.

Professors and students from Dillard will work along with professors and students from LSu to advance the research. In addition, the center will partner with community clinics such as those run by Excelth and school based clinics run by LSU Health Sciences Center. The center will also partner with medical centers such as LSU Hospitals, Children’s Hospital and Ochsner Medical Center.

The initial research of the center will focus on understanding why some African American males have a genetic makeup that make them more at risk for developing aggressive prostate cancer, why viruses cause more cervical cancer in African American women, and what is the contribution of genetics in the development of asthma and obesity in minority children.

The Louis “Satchmo” Armstrong Summer Jazz Camp needs your help

Dear Jazz Lovers:

I write in these extraordinary times to request your support in maintaining 16 years of low-cost jazz education programming to young people of all scio-economic backgrounds. As you are aware, the Louis “Satchmo” Armstrong Summer Jazz Camp has evolved from a one week program to an all day, three week program which hosts over 100 New Orleans, along with a number of out-of-town children each summer for free or nominal cost, depending on individual need. The program addresses a critical need to supplement the relatively meager arts education experiences available to most students during the regular academic year with more rigorous training during the summer. The program has been in existence since 1995 and will celebrate its sixteenth anniversary this year.

Unfortunately, the Summer Jazz Camp represents a significant expense that is particularly difficult in this trying economic climate. Despite support from a range of individuals, foundations, and government agencies, the Jazz Camp projects a shortfall, which without new support will place an enormous strain on the organization’s ability to provide programming this year. We have already cancelled our annual student cookout. I hope that you will consider making a gift or point us in the direction of someone who can help ensure the future of quality jazz education in the city, which created the art form.

The Armstrong Summer Jazz Camp is open to children ages 10 - 21 years old. All applicants go through an interview and audition to determine commitment and level of ability prior to acceptance. The audition is not a competitive process. It allows teachers to determine the level of skill thus placing students where they can best improve and excel. It is a mission of the Jazz Camp that students from all economic backgrounds be recruited and accepted. Since its inception, more than 1500 students have participated in the program.

The 2010 Summer Jazz Camp takes place July 6 - 23, weekdays 9:00 a.m. - 3:00 p.m. This year Jazz Camp will move to the campus of Loyola University New Orleans.

We are committed to the proposition of developing the whole child through music, giving our youngsters a positive, creative outlet and developing their self-confidence and self-discipline through this artistic endeavor.

The Armstrong Summer Jazz Camp must secure significant new funding to continue offering this level of programming at nominal cost. Please join us by supporting this vibrant, community outreach program to New Orleans’ youth. I also invite you to visit our website at www.louisarmstrongjazzcamp.com. Also included is the program’s 2010 calendar of events and a one page fact sheet.

Thank you so much for your consideration of this important music education program for New Orleans.

Sincerely,

Jackie Harris, Executive Director

To make a donation to the Satchmo Jazz Camp, kindly mail your a check or money order to: 124 Roselyn Park Pl, New Orleans, LA 70131. Any contribution is welcomed.

Committee for a Better New Orleans Announces Opening of Nominations For 2010 Bryan Bell Metropolitan Leadership Forum

Future Leaders Sought for Challenging, Stimulating Program

With New Orleans still facing myriad challenges, the Committee for a Better New Orleans (CBNO) announces the opening of nominations for the 2010 Bryan Bell Metropolitan Leadership Forum. First offered more than four decades ago, the Metropolitan Leadership Forum includes among its graduates leaders in every aspect of New Orleans life, including government, education, business, faith, and the nonprofit sector. This year’s class will join more than two thousand fellow alumni in serving as a tremendous resource to the community.

The Leadership Forum begins September 12 with a bus tour of the city, designed to give participants an overview of the problems and the opportunities ahead. Additional session topics include Human Relations, Housing, Education, Environment and Coastal Issues, Public Safety, Economic and Workforce Development, Regionalism and Transportation, City Management, and Health Care. Each session features two or three guest speakers with expertise and experience in the topic at hand, followed by lively question-and-answer sessions.

Another key feature of the Leadership Forum is the class project. Participants will design their own community service project in either education or housing, to experience first-hand the power of volunteerism. Upon completion of the Forum, graduates are also given information on how to link up with organizations that match their interests – and two will be invited to serve on the CBNO Board of Directors.

Any member of the community may nominate candidates for the Leadership Forum, and self-nominations are welcome; nomination forms may be found on the CBNO web site, www.cbno.org. The nomination deadline is July 26, 2010. There is a minimal $200 participation fee for the Forum, with the bulk of the cost underwritten by a variety of sponsors and a dedicated endowment. Sponsorships for the 2010 Leadership Forum are still available. Sponsors for the 2009 Forum included Harrah’s New Orleans Casino, the Reily Foundation, Peoples Health Network, Educate Now!, Jones Walker, and the Greater New Orleans Foundation.

For more information about the 2010 Bryan Bell Metropolitan Leadership Forum, please contact CBNO President Keith Twitchell at (504) 267-4666 or Forum Coordinator Lynn Crean at gulfareatraining@yahoo.com.