Founding Director The Institute for the Developing Mind – Children’s Hospital Los Angeles – Los Angeles, CA
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Children's Hospital Los Angeles, in partnership with University of Southern California (USC) and the Keck School of Medicine of USC, seeks to recruit a transformative leader for its new Institute for the Developing Mind (IDM). The vision of the IDM is to be an internationally recognized center for innovative research, diagnosis, prevention and treatment of neurodevelopmental and behavioral disorders by establishing a comprehensive program of interdisciplinary research, education, training and clinical services at Children's Hospital Los Angeles and USC.
The Director of the Institute for the Developing Mind will be an outstanding clinician scientist, able to provide transformative leadership in the developmental neurosciences at Children's Hospital Los Angeles and the Keck School of Medicine of USC. The Director will provide overall leadership to build the IDM, overseeing strategic planning, recruitment and program development, and ensuring the integration of training and research programs with clinical services throughout the hospital. Candidates should qualify for the position of Associate Professor on the Tenure Track or full Tenured Professor.
Children's Hospital Los Angeles (CHLA)
We create hope and build healthier futures.
Mission Statement, Children's Hospital Los Angeles
Children's Hospital Los Angeles was founded at the turn of the 20th century, through a remarkable effort led by an organization called King's Daughters, a group of women who identified the need for a pediatric hospital for the nascent city of Los Angeles. Over the ensuing century, CHLA has evolved to become one of the world's top centers for pediatric care, and has achieved many firsts in pediatric medicine along the way. The Children's Center for Cancer and Blood Diseases pioneered treatments that are now used as the standard of care for acute leukemia, the most common childhood cancer. CHLA was also the site of the first pediatric heart surgery performed on the West Coast, and the Children's Brain Center developed a magnetic resonance-compatible incubator, which made CHLA the first in the world to perform functional magnetic resonance imaging on the tiniest babies. CHLA researchers have successfully improved the survival rate of children with neuroblastoma from 15% to 55%; developed an innovative laser/chemotherapy treatment for retinoblastoma that is considered one of the most significant therapeutic advances in a quarter-century; and performed the world's first transfer of a healthy gene into the umbilical cord blood cells of a newborn with Severe Combined Immunodeficiency Disease. The Saban Research Institute at CHLA was also home to the world's first gene therapy clinical trial for children infected with HIV-1, and to the pioneering work in epigenetics by Peter Jones.
CHLA ranks as one of the nation's top hospitals in the Honor Roll of U.S. News & World Report Best Children's Hospitals List , and the hospital's physicians consistently appear on the Best Doctors in America List. In 2012, for the fourth year in a row,CHLA was one of just twelve children's hospitals nationally to be named as one of the safest hospitals for children in the nation by the Leapfrog Group. Among other distinctions, CHLA: Recently completed a successful $1 billion capital campaign; Moved into a new 480,000 square foot $636 million hospital building in July 2011; Was designated as a Magnet Hospital by the American Nurses Credentialing Center, an honor held by only 5% of hospitals nationwide; Is a proud recipient of the Beacon Award for Excellence in Pediatric Intensive Care Units, an award given by the American Association of Critical Care Nursing; Is the most recognized and favored hospital in Los Angeles County among families with children, according to a 2010 independent study; Provides more than $160 million annually in community benefits to the children and families of Los Angeles; and Is one of the only seven children's hospitals nationwide to receive a 2007 Hospital of Choice Award from the American Alliance of Healthcare Providers, an award given to institutions that are the most customer-friendly hospitals in America. In addition to pioneering new and minimally invasive techniques, CHLA serves as a major regional referral center for children who require life saving acute care. The medical staff at CHLA includes 528 physicians, 94% of whom are board-certified in their specialty or specialties. CHLA is organized into five departments: Anesthesiology and Critical Care Medicine; Pathology and Laboratory Medicine; Pediatrics; Radiology; and Surgery. In addition to its main campus in the Los Feliz section of Los Angeles, CHLA operates branch outpatient campuses in Arcadia, Valencia and other locations in the greater Los Angeles area. CHLA cares for the largest and most diverse patient population of any leading pediatric research hospital in North America, delivering care through approximately 302,000 annual outpatient visits and 11,000 inpatient visits, as well as 66,000 emergency department visits. More than 15,000 surgeries are performed at CHLA every year, including complex procedures not performed at any other hospital in Southern California. CHLA's programs for patients with cancer and congenital heart disease are among the largest in the country and provide opportunities for the study of the neurotoxic effects of disease and treatment of these disorders. To learn more about Children's Hospital Los Angeles, please visit www.chla.org.
The Saban Research Institute at Children's Hospital Los Angeles
Children's Hospital Los Angeles is a national leader in pediatric research, with an overarching goal to improve the health and well being of children through basic, clinical and translational studies that combine operations in the lab, in the clinic and in the community. Among its distinguished faculty, 90 faculty members are principal investigators in peer review and extramurally funded research studies. Many are on advisory boards for scientific journals and funding agencies. Research at CHLA is largely operated through The Saban Research Institute, which is among the largest and most productive pediatric research centers in the Western U.S. With $26 million in NIH grant funding, the Institute supports an international team of researchers and physicians who collaborate to combat cancer, brain disorders, obesity, and diabetes, and other conditions. During the last 15 years, the NIH has ranked CHLA among the top eight recipients of research funding among freestanding children's hospitals.
Research advancement and recruitment at The Saban Research Institute is focused on the developmental origins of health and disease, and is organized into three overlapping themes: the Developing Mind, Regenerative Medicine & Cellular Therapies, and Immunology & Metabolism. CHLA faculty have received grants to support anti-leukemia drugs, pediatric blood and marrow transplants, pediatric trauma research, gene sequencing for childhood cancer treatment, regenerative medicine, and other topics. In 2010, CHLA was awarded $7 million as a partner in the Southern California Clinical and Translational Science Institute, a collaboration of health-care institutions focused on accelerating the translation of science into solutions for better health. This initiative is part of a $56.8 million Clinical and Translational Science Award from the NIH to support and promote scientific discoveries and their application in real-life settings to health and health care, focusing on health issues of people living in densely populated urban environments.
The Saban Research Institute is committed to training the next generation of leaders in pediatric academic medicine, supporting a broad and diverse training community through intramural funding opportunities, a weekly research seminar series, career development workshops and social events. With over 150 active post-doctoral fellows representing 25 countries, The Saban Research Institute has a dynamic training environment that offers basic, clinical and translational research projects across seven scientific priority areas.
The Developmental Neuroscience Program of The Saban Research Institute is composed of a dynamic team of scientists engaged in basic developmental neurobiological research directed toward identifying fundamental mechanisms of brain development, examining neurobiological events, and understanding the relationship between abnormal brain development and disease. The long term goal of the program is to exploit the inherent plasticity of the neonatal central nervous system to rescue normal function of affected brain circuitry and restore the full range of learning abilities, personality and physiology that every child deserves. Together with parallel clinical studies, these inquiries will provide essential clues leading to novel therapeutic interventions and preventive measures to be tested in the Institute for the Developing Mind.
The Saban Research Institute also has strong laboratory-based research programs in Developmental Biology, Stem Cell Biology, Cancer and Imaging, providing limitless opportunities for multidisciplinary scientific inquiries. Other programs include Community and Behavioral Health, Health Promotion and Disease Prevention; Diabetes & Obesity; and Immunology, Infectious Disease & Pathogens. The Saban Research Institute provides the critical resources and infrastructure to support the research mission of the IDM. This includes core resources in imaging technology, bioinformatics, preclinical research, genomics and proteomics, as well as equipment for clinical imaging, and centralized resources for conducting innovative clinical trials and data analysis. For more information about The Saban Research Institute, please visit www.chla.org/research .
Note: Additional programs, resources, equipment and facilities of relevance to the Institute for the Developing Mind, at Children's Hospital Los Angeles, are detailed in Appendix 1.
The University of Southern California and the Keck School of Medicine of USC
CHLA is one of the country's premier teaching hospitals and has been affiliated with the Keck School of Medicine of USC since 1932. CHLA staff physicians are faculty members at the Keck School of Medicine and together they train approximately 575 medical students, 85 full-time residents, three chief residents, and 98 fellows per year. For the past 11 years, 96% of the residents graduating from the Children's Hospital Residency Program passed the American Board of Pediatrics exam on the first attempt, far exceeding the national average.
CHLA gains significant advantages through its partnership with USC, which is a long-time member of the Association of American Universities and the oldest private research university in the Western United States. USC has steadily enhanced its academic excellence and reputation over the past two decades; it recently ranked 23rd among public and private universities in the nation, according to the 2012 U.S. News & World Report rankings. USC is home to the David and Dana Dornsife College of Letters, Art and Sciences, as well as 17 professional schools, including the prestigious Viterbi School of Engineering and the Annenberg School for Communication. The University Park Campus, located in the heart of Los Angeles' Downtown Arts and Education Corridor, is home to the College and many of the professional schools. The Health Sciences campus, northeast of downtown Los Angeles, is home to the Keck School of Medicine, the School of Pharmacy, three major teaching hospitals, and teaching programs in Occupational Science and Occupational Therapy, and Biokinesiology and Physical Therapy.
Under the leadership of President C. L. Max Nikias, USC is aspiring to become one of the world's top research universities. As a central component to achieving this ambition, USC is developing a comprehensive, integrated academic medical enterprise centered on the 78 acre USC Health Sciences Campus, located three miles northeast of downtown Los Angeles. In addition to CHLA, the USC Medical Enterprise comprises the Keck School of Medicine of USC, the Keck Medical Center of USC, the USC Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center and Hospital, the Los Angeles County + USC Medical Center (LAC+USC), the CHLA Medical Group, and Doctors of USC -- a 500-member physician practice group that operates in Los Angeles County.
A Collaborative Environment
The Zilkha Neurogenetic Institute at the Keck School of Medicine: The Zilkha Neurogenetic Institute (ZNI) represents a major component of the expansion of neuroscience research at USC. The ZNI is a 125,000 square-foot facility that houses state-of-the-art laboratory space for basic research on how the nervous system develops, functions and ages. Designed to house over 30 laboratories, the ZNI currently is home to 16 research laboratories studying the nervous system at the molecular, cellular, systems, and whole animal levels. Robust interactions with other clinical and laboratory neuroscientists at the Keck School of Medicine in the departments of Cell and Neurobiology, Physiology, Neurology, and in the School of Pharmacy further extend the opportunities for effective collaboration.
The Eli & Edythe Broad Center for Regenerative Medicine & Stem Cell Research of the Keck School of Medicine: Investigations exploring the power of stem cell research in brain development will be done in collaboration with investigators in the Stem Cell program of The Saban Research Institute and the Broad Center of the Keck School of Medicine. The combined efforts of these scientists promise to bring the therapeutic potential of stem cell biology to bear on a variety of devastating neurodevelopmental disorders that afflict both children and adults.
The Neuroscience Institute at USC: The Neuroscience Institute at USC is a unified assembly of neuroscientists derived from the faculties of several traditional departments located at the University Park Campus. These scientists share the common goal of gaining fundamental insight into nervous system function and provide expertise in behavioral analysis, systems neuroscience, biochemistry, and computer engineering. Together with researchers in the IDM, this collective expertise will bring a truly interdisciplinary approach to research on neurodevelopmental disorders. IDM faculty will also make a substantial contribution to the graduate program in neuroscience at USC that is focused on training the next generation of neuroscientists.
The Brain and Creativity Institute at USC: The Brain and Creativity Institute was founded by Antonio Damasio and Hanna Damasio in 2006. Since ancient times, thinkers and scientists have sought to explain how we perceive, interpret, and shape our existence. However, until very recently, researchers interested in these questions have had to rely entirely on conjecture or indirect evidence. Recent advances in brain imaging and fresh insights into the functioning of the human brain at the level of systems, cells and molecules, now provide opportunities for uncovering the neurological basis for a large array of mental functions -- from emotion and decision-making to the creativity expressed in the arts, sciences and technology.
The Institute for Maternal-Fetal Health at CHLA: The Institute for Maternal-Fetal Health is a collaboration of CHLA and the Keck School of Medicine of USC, bringing together a range of subspecialists who actively manage care for a large cohort of fetuses with complex birth defects. The Institute has 120-150 mothers with high-risk pregnancies on its weekly list. Since its inception in 2003, the Institute has managed around 1,000 fetuses/neonates with congenital heart disease, close to 1,000 fetuses/neonates with complex surgical anomalies, close to 500 fetuses/neonates with neurosurgical/brain developmental/neurological abnormalities and a great number of other fetuses/neonates with medical, including genetic and metabolic, conditions. In addition, the fetal intervention program has performed over 700 endoscopic procedures since its inception in 2006.
THE INSTITUTE FOR THE DEVELOPING MIND
The mind of a child emerges from an intricate developmental process that begins in the womb and continues throughout life. Recent advances in brain research provide unprecedented insight into how we develop the ability to process emotions, thoughts, dreams, and memories. Disruption of this carefully orchestrated process has profound consequences for behavior and learning, as well as placing a heavy burden on patients' families. It is becoming increasingly clear that many devastating diseases that affect the human brain, such as autism and other neurodevelopmental disorders in childhood and neurodegenerative diseases in late adulthood have early developmental origins and occur at an alarming frequency. Los Angeles County, with a population of nearly 10 million, provides a highly diverse population for the study of children with a wide spectrum of neurodevelopmental disorders. One recent study found several major clusters of autism in Los Angeles areas ( http://www.environmentalhealthnews.org/ehs/news/autism-clusters ).
Children's Hospital Los Angeles is taking the lead in assembling teams of physician and clinician scientists, building new facilities, and providing a medical home for children whose lives are affected by developmental events that alter brain function. There is no place better prepared to create a comprehensive environment for diagnosis, prevention and treatment for these children or to coordinate the needs of their families. With its comprehensive range of outstanding clinical programs, CHLA provides the ideal opportunity to create a comprehensive environment for diagnosis and treatment for children with congenital and acquired neurodevelopmental disorders. For example, prematurity affects over 12% of births and the neonatal faculty at CHLA are leaders in monitoring brain perfusion in the fetus and neonate and relating these findings to structural and functional findings with our superb neuroimaging resources.
The Institute for the Developing Mind will provide families and patients with one central source for clinical assessment, treatment, and a wide range of additional resources. It will also include innovative clinical research programs that hold the promise of providing new treatments for neurodevelopmental and behavioral disorders. An improved understanding of the developmental events that occur in early childhood will also shed light on diseases that affect adults such as Alzheimer's and Parkinson's disease.
The Vision
To be an internationally recognized center for innovative research, diagnosis, prevention and treatment of neurodevelopmental and behavioral disorders by establishing a comprehensive program of interdisciplinary research, training, education and clinical services at Children's Hospital Los Angeles and USC.
The Goals Provide innovative clinical environments for the early diagnosis and treatment of disorders that impact the developing brain. Be the leading source of discoveries impacting our understanding of human neurodevelopment and behavior that translate into novel therapeutic opportunities. Train a new generation of leaders in the field of neurodevelopmental pediatrics who transcend traditional boundaries between disciplines and institutions. Serve as a regional resource for social support and education for children and their families who are challenged by conditions that affect cognitive and neurodevelopment.
The IDM will encompass many diverse disciplines as it pursues its mission to provide a seamless clinical service. Its evaluation and intervention programs will focus on the child, but will also address the intersecting environmental influences from homes, schools, neighborhoods, and cultures. It will assess childhood development in an interdisciplinary manner that takes advantage of the great overlap in knowledge among the specialized fields and cross-pollinate best practices. To maximize the benefits to children and families, the IDM will work closely with physicians, teachers, law enforcement, government officials, social workers, community programs and civic leaders.
Brain function depends on the organization of complex arrays of neuronal circuits. USC neuroscientists exploit the combined application of imaging technologies and molecular genetics to discover cellular and molecular events that underlie normal brain development in various animal models. The Institute for the Developing Mind will provide an integrated, interdisciplinary environment to apply these and other advancements to the understanding and treatment of these disorders. Transformative Leadership
Children's Hospital Los Angeles has launched a significant fundraising campaign to support the Institute for the Developing Mind. This includes an endowed director's chair, a director's program endowment, and three program endowments to support faculty recruitment and program development in the three areas: Neuroimaging, Developmental Neurogenetics, and Developmental-Behavioral Neuroscience. These three additional program endowments will support recruitment and program development in three major areas that are built upon CHLA's existing strengths in developmental neuroscience and thus promise to provide fundamental insights into the developmental origins of brain disorders, as well as contribute to novel therapeutic and prevention strategies: Neuroimaging: Recent advances in imaging technologies are providing a new window through which to view brain function during normal development and disease. Using new neuroimaging techniques, it is now possible to distinguish brain regions that perform differently in patients from a variety of diagnostic groups. Additional research in this area will provide clues as to underlying neurological mechanisms, as well as uncover diagnostic markets of abnormal brain function. Parallel studies in genetically engineered mice can be translated into a better mechanistic understanding of pediatric disease. Developmental Neurogenetics: Because some neurodevelopmental disorders run in families, a most promising area of clinical brain research is genetic analysis. Modern genetic methods will be employed to discover potential biomarkers for autism and other conditions that affect behavior. This team of clinical researchers will include scientists with expertise in neurochemistry, which will provide an important link between genetic analysis and prevention strategies or the development of therapeutic agents. Developmental-Behavioral Neuroscience: A common element of many neurodevelopmental disorders is a functional disconnect between environmental information and generation of appropriate behavioral responses. Teams of behavioral psychologists and pediatric psychiatrists will study children at risk for neurodevelopmental disorders in various environments in order to distinguish behavioral traits that prove diagnostic. This research will uncover therapeutic opportunities for early behavioral modification and remediation once a diagnosis is made.
The Director's endowed chair will provide funds to support the Director's research program and provide sustained salary support. The Director's program endowment will provide the Director with recruitment and operational funds with which to build and sustain the IDM as a world class, comprehensive research and clinical program. The Director will provide overall leadership to the IDM, oversee strategic planning processes, recruit a multidisciplinary team of experts, and ensure the integration of research programs with clinical services within the IDM.
Recruitment of a transformative leader to serve as Founding Director of the Institute for the Developing Mind is a critically important step toward successful implementation and realization of the Institute's innovative vision and mission. The leadership of CHLA is fully committed to this critical position, thereby giving the Director the broad institutional support necessary to build a strong team of investigators and the platform to support the growth of their programs.
LEADERSHIP OPPORTUNITY
Desired traits and characteristics:
Children's Hospital Los Angeles desires to recruit a nationally known academic clinician scientist with strong leadership skills to become the Founding Director of The Institute for the Developing Mind. He/She should be a visionary who is interested in creating a world class Institute, directing the work of clinician and physician scientists and Ph.D. researchers, whose appointments reside in a number of departments, and promoting interdisciplinary collaboration. This person must be comfortable taking on responsibility for the defining and shaping the Institute and building its research portfolio. Given the scope of responsibility of this position, the Director must lead by the power of reputation, ideas and motivation, and will serve as a role model to colleagues and to staff. The Director must be a persuasive advocate for CHLA and for the Institute, able to articulate goals, inspire progress, and respond nimbly to change. Working with CHLA and CHLA Foundation leadership, the Director will be an active partner in the fundraising campaign to endow the Institute. The successful candidate must share and demonstrate a personal commitment to CHLA's values of respect, excellence, service, knowledge, and teamwork, which are also values shared by the Keck School of Medicine of USC. Career path leading to this position:
Candidates should have strong research, clinical and management experience in a research-oriented children's hospital or pediatric department affiliated with a university medical school, with a minimum of ten years of progressive medical and research experience and an increasing scope of responsibility. They should have a track record of research accomplishment, ideally with NIH funding. The Director must have demonstrated success in developing a coherent research agenda and have the ability to successfully recruit others, and to promote appropriate collaborative research with other Institute partners, within CHLA and externally.
Education:
A medical degree and/or Ph.D. in an appropriate clinical discipline is required. Candidates with a medical degree should preferably be certified in the appropriate sub-specialty within the American Boards of Pediatrics, Psychiatry & Neurology, or Medical Genetics. Candidates should qualify for the position of Associate Professor on the Tenure Track or full Tenured Professor.
Compensation:
There is a very competitive package available for this position; salary is comprised of administrative and academic support from CHLA and the Keck School of Medicine of USC. A generous benefits package, including tuition remission for qualified dependents, is provided by USC. Relocation assistance is also available.
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