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. Due to the heterogeneity in program matriculation and graduation dates, the PAEA Student Surveys are conducted annually, year-round. As a result, PA faculty will have the opportunity to contribute to the PAEA Program Report and PAEA Faculty and Directors Survey bi-annually and to the PAEA Student Surveys 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:
- Increasing capacity in clinical education
- Attracting and retaining students and faculty from diverse backgrounds
These topics address PAEA Strategic Goals B and C which focus on preparing the next generation of PAs who deliver quality patient care and are representative of our nation’s population and eliminating systematic racism and bias in PA education.
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 the pipeline of PA students from diverse backgrounds
- Barriers to the creation of progressive learning environments for PA students
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
The program has two application cycles for PA faculty researchers to submit up to 10 survey questions to be included in the Program Survey and the Student Surveys. Please limit the number of open-ended questions (each with a 250-character limit) to a maximum of three questions. Because the survey takes a considerable amount of time to complete, applicants should be aware of the burden that they are placing on respondents when developing their survey questions.
- The Call for Proposals is currently closed.
Applications that are not formatted correctly or missing required elements may be delayed or not considered.
Previous Recipients
- 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