W. Fred Taylor Award
Released by EPSCoR/IDeA Coalition and Foundation:
The W. Fred Taylor Award is an annual recognition presented by the EPSCoR/IDeA Coalition and Foundation Boards. The award honors an individual who has made significant contributions to enhancing the impact of the NIH Institutional Development Award (IDeA) Program, either regionally or nationally. It was established to celebrate Dr. W. Fred Taylor’s remarkable 20 years of service at NIH, during which he expanded opportunities for students, faculty, and institutions in states and territories with historically low levels of NIH funding for biomedical research.
Dr. Taylor’s commitment to increasing research capacity in underfunded regions and his dedication to advancing the goals of the IDeA Program inspired the creation of this award, which recognizes those who have made lasting contributions to the IDeA initiative.
Sharon I. Rounds, MD, is the 2025 recipient of the W. Fred Taylor Award in recognition of her exceptional contributions to the NIH IDeA Program and her efforts to enhance research infrastructure in underfunded states. Dr. Rounds, Professor of Medicine and Associate Dean for Translational Science at The Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University, has dedicated her career to improving biomedical research opportunities, particularly through her work as Program Director of the Advance Rhode Island Clinical Translational Research Program (Advance-RI-CTR).
Dr. Rounds’ numerous contributions to the IDeA program include co-directing (with Dr. Ghada Bourjeily) the IDeA State Consortium for Clinical Research Resource Center, launched in 2023; serving as co-Principal Investigator of the CardioPulmonary Vascular Biology Center for Biomedical Research Excellence (CPVB COBRE) from 2014-2021; and serving on numerous national review panels and advisory committees. Her leadership has helped foster collaboration and expand clinical research in multiple IDeA states.
Dr. Rounds has earned numerous honors, including the Edward Livingston Trudeau Medal in 2017 and election as a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science in 2018. In 2020, she received the Milton W. Hamolsky Lifetime Achievement Award from the American College of Physicians, Rhode Island Chapter.
The EPSCoR/IDeA Coalition and Foundation are proud to present the 2025 W. Fred Taylor Award to Dr. Rounds for her unwavering dedication to advancing research and mentoring in IDeA jurisdictions.