Support to Advance Research (STAR) Program

PAEA is accepting STAR Program applications from January 28 – March 21, 2025.

The STAR program allows PA faculty researchers to submit no more than 10 survey questions to be included in the 2025 PAEA Program Survey. Because the survey takes a considerable amount of time to complete, only close-ended questions will be considered for inclusion in the Program Survey, and applicants should be conscious of the time demands of survey respondents.

The STAR Program is adapted from the Society of Teachers of Family Medicine’s CAFM Educational Research Alliance Program. The program’s goals are to: 

  • Increase the quality and frequency of research and scholarly activity among faculty of PAEA member institutions 
  • Improve the process for surveying constituents with better questions and fewer surveys 
  • Provide a clearinghouse of data that faculty of PAEA member institutions can use to produce scholarly work 

The frequency of the PAEA Program Survey to a bi-annual release to provide time and space to analyze the data and gain a greater understanding of our member programs. As a result, PA faculty will have the opportunity to contribute to the PAEA Program Survey bi-annually.

Eligibility 

The principal investigator (PI) must be a faculty member at an accredited PAEA member or institutional colleague program in good standing and be employed by the educational institution for a minimum of 20 hours per week for the duration of the project.  

Priority will be given to proposals that receive high scores on the evaluation criteria, are likely to yield a high-quality, peer-reviewed publication, and are aligned with PAEA’s current research priorities: 

  1. Increasing capacity in clinical education
  2. Promoting general fairness in PA faculty and/or student recruitment and retention.

However, projects can investigate a range of issues, including: 

  • Workforce readiness of PA program graduates
  • Understanding and improving didactic education
  • Challenges and solutions to issues in clinical education
  • Equipping PA students for expanded leadership roles in health care
  • Building a pathway for students that is representative of our nation’s population
  • Addressing barriers that exist in work environments for PAs.

A proposal is accepted under the condition that the PI makes changes to the questions as requested by the reviewers and the PAEA Research Team (if required). 

The primary investigator must sign the PAEA research agreement and complete the research project within 18 months of receiving the data. The PI is to submit a final project report to PAEA Research Team within 90 days of the end of the study. The project will be deemed complete when the final report has been approved by PAEA.

How to Apply 

Before submitting your application through the online application system, please carefully review the submission guidelines and required materials. Applications that are not formatted correctly or that are missing required elements may be delayed or not considered.

Questions?

If you have any questions, please contact the Research team.

Previous Recipients

  • 2023 Recipient: Diversity and Inclusion, A1.11 Standard Impact Assessment
    Shani Fleming, MSHS, MPH, PA-C, associate professor at the University of Maryland Baltimore PA program
  • 2020 Recipient: LGBTQ Curriculum in Physician Assistant Programs
    Quincy Jones, MSW, MHS, PA-C, assistant professor at the Duke University PA program
  • 2019 Recipient: PA Program Policies to Assess and Address Student Reports of Negative Events during Clinical Training,
    Nicholas Hudak, MPAS, PA-C, associate professor at the Duke University PA program
  • 2018 Recipient: Assessing Curricular Approaches to Transgender Health
    Joanne Rolls, MPAS, PA-C, research team lead and an assistant clinical professor at the University of Utah
  • 2107 Recipient: Holistic Admissions and Diversity in Physician Assistant Programs
    James Stoehr, PhD Midwestern University, Glendale
  • 2016 Recipient: Pain Medicine: A Curriculum Survey of Physician Assistant Education Programs
    Johnna Yealy, MSPAS, PA-C, The University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center
  • 2015 Recipient: A National Curricular Survey of Quality Improvement Education in Physician Assistant Programs
    Oren Berkowitz, PhD, MSPH, PA, Boston University School of Medicine
  • 2014 Recipient: Motivational Interviewing Curricula in Physician Assistant Programs
    Abiola O. Keller, PA-C, MPH, PhD, Marquette University