Clinical Scholars

Introduction & Purpose

The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) is working alongside others to build a national Culture of Health that provides everyone in America a fair and just opportunity for health and well-being. Many obstacles pose challenges to this audacious vision. Life expectancy varies widely based on where people live, learn, work, and play. We spend more for our health care than any other developed nation, yet the quality of our health care and our overall health status don’t reflect that investment. Our population is increasingly diverse, yet inequities in health persist.

That’s why RWJF supports a number of leadership development programs: We know our nation needs a generation of leaders who recognize that to solve these pressing problems, we must approach them in a new way. Our leadership development programs are built to develop, support, and connect leaders who are:

• Caring, recognizing that leadership is relational, and that genuine care for others is at the heart of good leadership.
• Curious, with a genuine desire to connect, listen, learn, and grow.
• Collaborative, with a deep understanding that the changes we seek cannot be accomplished by any one person, organization or sector, that working together with other changemakers across boundaries is essential.
• Committed to taking risks and acting boldly to move beyond dreams toward real pathways to change—and to achieving greater equity in communities across our country.

Eligibility & Selection Criteria

Clinical Scholars is a team-based program for a wide variety of health professionals in community, clinical, or academic settings (e.g., audiologists, clinical counselors, dentists, dieticians, nurses, nurse practitioners, nutritionists, occupational therapists, pharmacists, physical therapists, physicians, physician assistants, psychologists, social workers, speech therapists, veterinarians). The team must be sponsored by an applicant organization that will manage the award. Complete eligibility requirements are included in the call for applications.

Key Dates & Deadlines

• January 28, 2020 (4–5 p.m. ET)
  Optional webinar for potential applicants of Clinical Scholars; a recording is available here, using this password YwpfQ3dh.
• March 13, 2020 (3 p.m. ET)
  Deadline for receipt of full applications, including video and references.
• June 3–4, 2020 
  Web-based semifinalist interviews with the national advisory committee (attendance required); semi-finalists will be notified by May 8. 
• July 9, 2020
  Deadline for receipt of finalist supplemental applications.
• Mid-July 2020
  Notification of finalist teams. 
• September 15, 2020
  Program begins. Grant funding initiated.
• October 24–29, 2020
  Clinical Scholars Leadership Retreat (on-site attendance required), Durham, N.C.
• 2020 or 2021 (date TBD by RWJF)
  RWJF Annual Leadership Institute, (on-site attendance required), date and location TBD.
• April 10–15, 2021
  Clinical Scholars Leadership Retreat (attendance required), Durham, N.C. 

Total Awards

• Number of fellows in the 2020 cohort: up to 35 (in teams of three to five)
• Grant funds: Grant funding is awarded based on team size—ranging from up to $315,000 for a three-person team to a maximum of $525,000 for a five-person team—to support the ongoing participation of all team members for all three years, including salary support for leadership development and project time, project funding, and project travel. This “up to” amount does not include an optional administrative fee, which the applicant organization may include to support the administrative costs of managing the award. All travel expenses to participate in the program’s on-site trainings are provided to fellows at no cost. Please note: The size of the team may not increase during the grant term.