RISE: The Robert W. Finberg, MD Memorial Research Training Awards for UMass Chan Department of Medicine Postdocs and PhD or MD/PhD Students
Call for Applications
Deadline for Submission: February 13, 2026
The Program in Innate Immunity is thrilled to announce an open competition for RISE: The Robert W. Finberg, MD Memorial Research Training Awards.
The purpose of these awards is to incentivize our students and postdoctoral scholars to produce highly competitive research in honor of the late Robert W. Finberg. As many of you know, Dr. Finberg was the Richard M. Haidack Distinguished Professor and Chair of the Department of Medicine at UMass Chan from 1999-2020 and was a trusted leader, scientist, and physician during the COVID-19 pandemic before he passed away unexpectedly on August 30, 2021. Dr. Finberg was a remarkably talented and energetic investigator who embraced all aspects of clinical medicine, infectious diseases, and immunology. It was under his guidance that the current Program in Innate Immunity came to be born, to grow, and to thrive.
There will be two awards: one for the best student research finding and one for the best postdoctoral applicant. The only restriction on applicants is that their research must be related to the broad fields of innate immunity and inflammation.
The winners will be acknowledged in two important ways. First, they will be invited to present their research orally at the department-level seminar series at the end of the year. Second, they will each be awarded a cash prize ($1,000 to the award-winning postdoc and $750 to the award-winning student).
Applications and the full program description, eligibility criteria, and how to apply are below. The deadline for submission of the application is February 13, 2026.
We look forward to receiving your application!
Program Description
Student Application
Postdoc Application
Goal/Purpose
Established in 2022, RISE: The Robert W. Finberg, MD Memorial Research Training Awards are dedicated to helping future researchers and physician-researchers RISE above and learn without limitations, grow in their rich academic experiences, and achieve their goals.
Funds will be awarded in two categories: One to a PhD or MD/PhD student award and a second award to a postdoctoral fellow.
Prize
$1000 cash prize to a postdoctoral fellow and $750 to a UMass Chan PhD or MD/PhD student. Each awardee will be invited to give a 15-minute presentation on their research at the department level seminar series at the end of the year.
Eligibility and application process
All current PhD, MD/PhD students and postdocs in good standing at UMass Chan are eligible to apply. Eligible participants must complete the application and submit by the application deadline.
Criteria for selection
Candidates will be considered based on their scholarly accomplishments as well as their contributions to the training environment in the Department of Medicine. Candidates will be evaluated by a committee of UMass Chan reviewers and the final selection will be made based on the following criteria:
- The candidate’s body of work both published and ongoing in the field of Innate Immunity.
- The candidate’s contributions to DOM activities and the training environment.
- Only a single nominee.
- Awardees will present their work at a department-level seminar series at the end of the year.
Award conditions
Awardees will receive a $1000 prize to a postdoctoral fellow and a $750 prize to a UMass Chan graduate student. Applicants agree in advance that if chosen, they will give a 15-minute presentation on their research at the department level seminar series at the end of the year.
Application requirements
- Applicant Information (name, degree program, mentor lab)
- One page description of the applicant’s scholarly work (including figures, references not included)
- One paragraph description of candidate’s career goals
- Support letter from primary mentor
- OPTIONAL: any published article DIRECTLY RELATED to the proposal may be appended to the application
Review process
A Review Committee will assess applications based on the applicant’s eligibility and adherence to the criteria for selection, as described above.
Applications should be submitted to: Maureen Mayfield
2025 RISE Awardees
Applications were scored by an independent review panel and the following individuals have been named as the awardees:
Shrutika Mintri
Student awardee
Project title: Characterizing inflammasome activation by bacterial amyloid Curli complexes from biofilms in dendritic cells
Primary mentor: Dr. Stefania Gallucci
Secondary mentor: Dr. Kate Fitzgerald
Pooja Parameswaran
Student Awardee
Project Title: HSV-1 inhibits NLRP1 induced pyroptosis in primary human keratinocytes
Primary mentor: Dr. Megan Orzalli