Researcher Spotlight

Jocelyn Spates, PharmD, BCPS

Jocelyn Spates, PharmD, BCPS, is a professor and the Associate Dean for Clinical Affairs at Florida A&M University (FAMU) College of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences, Institute of Public Health (CoPPS, IPH). In 2022, FAMU CoPPS, IPH received a cooperative agreement award from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Office of Minority Health and Health Equity (OMHHE).

The one-year grant, “Advancing COVID-19 Health Equity Research,” focuses on identifying significant gaps in local Florida communities that contribute to low enrollment of racial and ethnic minority populations in COVID-19 clinical trials. The researchers will develop and evaluate a tailored community-based strategy to advance diverse clinical trial enrollment. The project will also provide clinical research training for 30 diverse health care providers and workers in Jacksonville, Tampa, and Tallahassee.

This cooperative agreement award marks the first time an African American pharmacy practice faculty has been the principal investigator (PI) on a U01 award in the FAMU College of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences.  There are also 10 co-investigators from the CoPPS divisions of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Economic, Social and Administrative Pharmacy (ESAP), and the Institute of Public Health, including Selina Darling-Reed, Ph.D., Sandra Suther, Ph.D., and CoPPS, IPH Associate Dean and IPH Director Cynthia Harris, Ph.D.

For additional information, visit the Featured Research and Principal Investigators page.