This year, UNC Research Week will showcase emerging ideas, discoveries, and innovations at Carolina that are shaping our future. Join us in highlighting the UNC research community’s commitment to advancing knowledge that has the potential to transform industries, strengthen communities, and create a better world for us all. From breakthroughs in materials science to novel AI applications to creative and cultural exploration, we’re diving into endeavors that are at the frontier of what’s known.

UNC Research Week is an annual, campus-wide event sponsored by the Office of the Vice Chancellor for Research and the Office for Undergraduate Research.

For a calendar of events, visit researchweek.unc.edu.

UNC Research Connections: Health & Extreme Weather

Join the Office of Research of Development (ORD) and NC TraCS during University Research Week to explore research opportunities at the intersection of climate, health, and extreme weather. ORD is tracking a recent emphasis at NIH on the relationship between health and climate, following the release of a Health and Extreme Weather highlighted topic, another on time-sensitive research projects on environmental health, and an NIH-NSF Research Award Program partnership.

Hear from NIEHS program staff, learn about innovative research taking place across campus, and connect with collaborators for future research opportunities.

Highlights include:

• NIEHS program staff involved in developing the various newly announced initiatives will be present to share the latest updates and meet with faculty one-on-one
• Faculty lightning talks will showcase UNC expertise, ongoing projects, and emerging research directions to build new collaborations
• Networking opportunities will build interdisciplinary connections and explore potential collaborations

This event will be held in room 219 on the second floor of the Brinkhous-Bullitt Building.

Register

Please register by October 19 to participate. If you are interested in presenting a 5-minute lightning talk OR if you would like to request one of the limited one-on-one meeting times with NIEHS program staff, please contact Kelley Cardone at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

Engagement in Research Nuts & Bolts: Specific Approaches for Engaging Patient & Community Partners in Research

There is no "one-size-fits-all" approach to engaging patient, community, or other partners in your research. Rather, there are a variety of engagement methods to suit your study's needs, your research team's capacity, and your partners' interests.

This online training will describe three common approaches for working with patient, community, and other partners in your research: 1) consultative community feedback sessions; 2) advisory boards; and 3) sustained collaboration with partners as members of the research team.

The session will cover considerations for choosing these specific engagement methods, as well as concrete processes and steps for implementing each approach. Participation in our Engagement in Research 101 training is not required to attend this session; however, some knowledge of engagement, whether from prior training(s) or personal experience, may foster deeper understanding of the material in this session.

Presenters:
Alicia Bilheimer, MPH - Director of Engaged Science, NC TraCS
Veronica Carlisle, MPH, CHES - Senior Community Health Educator, UNC Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center (LCCC)
Nisha Datta, MS - Senior Project Manager, NC TraCS
Simone Frank, MPH - Senior Project Manager, NC TraCS
Jennifer Potter, MPH, CHES - Senior Program Coordinator for Clinical Outreach, LCCC

Register

Engaging Patient, Community, and Other Partners in Your Research is a multi-part online training series. You may register for the entire series OR any single training session. This training series was developed collaboratively with patient, community, and researcher partners and is co-sponsored by the UNC Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center's Office of Community Outreach and Engagement and the NC TraCS Institute’s Patient and Community Engagement in Research Program.

Biostatistics, Epidemiology, and Research Design (BERD) Lunch and Learn Series: Introduction to EPIC Cosmos: What is it, How Can You Use it for Research, and Methodological Considerations

This virtual session will provide an introduction to EPIC Cosmos, its utility for research projects and example of work through the lifecycle of a project.

This event is being cross-promoted by the NC BERD Consortium, a collaboration of the CTSA-funded BERD cores at UNC-Chapel Hill, Wake Forest University School of Medicine, and Duke University School of Medicine.

Department of Health Sciences Research Forum: From Symptoms to Signals: Revealing Hidden Emotional Processes with EEG

Please join the Department of Health Sciences Office of Research & Scholarship for their UNC Research Week forum featuring Alana Campbell, PhD, Assistant Professor in the Department of Psychiatry at the UNC School of Medicine.

The hybrid forum will take place in person (MacNider 321, LUNCH provided) and via Zoom. Please register to attend.

Questions? Contact the Department of Health Sciences Office of Research & Scholarship at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

Register

Ready to take your grant writing skills to the next level? Join us for Navigating the Grant Writing Journey: From Idea to Successful (Re)Submission.

This practical three-part workshop series covers all aspects of preparing applications for external funding, with a focus on NIH applications.

The three workshops will cover:

• General & strategic grantsmanship
• Effective communication
• Specific Aims & Research Strategy
• Budgeting & supporting documents
• Review and resubmission process
• Interactive roundtable discussion

The three sessions are designed to build on one another and cover the grant writing process as a whole. We encourage you to register with attending all three sessions in mind.

Sessions

10/14/2026 (2-5 p.m.): Effective Communication, General Grantsmanship, and Specific Aims
10/21/2026 (2-5 p.m.): Research Strategy, Supporting Documents, and Grant Review and Resubmissions
10/28/2026 (2-5 p.m.): Budgeting for Grant Proposals, Strategy & Grantsmanship, and Roundtable Discussion

register

Featured Speakers

• Samantha Schwartz, PhD – Science Grant Writer, NC TraCS Institute
• Nate Warren, PhD – Research Development Manager, UNC Office of Research Development (ORD)
• Marina Sokolsky-Papkov, PhD – Associate Professor, DPMP, UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy; Director, Translational Nanocharacterization and Nanoformulation Research Laboratory, Center for Nanotechnology in Drug Delivery
• Rebecca Carlson, MLS, AHIP – Health Sciences Librarian and liaison to the UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy
• Katherine Howell, MSLIS – Health Sciences Librarian
• Amy Fry, BA – Carolina Cancer Nanotechnology T32 Training Program Coordinator and Grants Manager, Office of Research Administration, UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy
• Tim Flood, PhD – Clinical Associate Professor of Management and Corporate Communication, UNC Kenan-Flagler Business School
• Alan Marsh, PhD – Associate Director, Office of Postdoctoral Affairs
• Nathan Blouin, MBA, CRA – Assistant Vice Chancellor for Research Development
• Jason Franz, PhD – F32 Study Section Reviewer; Professor, Lampe Joint Department of Biomedical Engineering (UNC / NC State)

Questions? Contact Amy Fry at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Presented by: Carolina Cancer Nanotechnology Training Program (C-CNTP) and the NC Translational and Clinical Sciences (NC TraCS) Institute