Kerry Ard, associate professor in the School of Environment and Natural Resources (SENR) at The Ohio State University has secured a U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF) Mid-Career Advancement (MCA) award. The $372,000 award supports her project, “Improving U.S. Life Expectancy” and will investigate which local social and environmental conditions have the greatest influence on life expectancy in the U.S.
"With U.S. life expectancy on the decline, and billions spent each year on programs aimed at improving social conditions, there is a pressing need for clear, actionable research that identifies which investments are most effective," Ard said.
The NSF MCA program provides the opportunity for mid-career researchers to substantively enhance and advance their research program through synergistic partnerships – providing protected time, resources, and the means to gain new skills.
The project will focus on three goals – laying critical groundwork for future policy-linked research and advances the integration of sociological and public health approaches to understanding population health.
"This grant has helped me hit the ground in my partnership with the Translational Data Analytics Institute, and mentorship of a team of high school and undergraduate students, who are working to build cyberinfrastructure to help create policies that truly improve lives."