History of the Winn Award Programs
The Robert A. Winn Diversity in Clinical Trials Award Program (Winn Awards) was established in 2020 by the Bristol Myers Squibb Foundation with the goal of increasing diversity in clinical trials and transforming the clinical research landscape.
The Winn Awards are programs for physicians and rising medical students at various points in their career pathway. The Winn Career Development Award (Winn CDA) and the Winn Clinical Investigator Pathway Program (Winn CIPP) are led by the Winn Award implementation team at the Virginia Commonwealth University’s Massey Comprehensive Cancer Center. The Winn Clinical Investigator Leadership Awards (Winn CILA) are implemented by collaborating organizations: Conquer Cancer the ASCO Foundation and the American Heart Association.
About Dr. Winn
The namesake of the Robert A. Winn Diversity in Clinical Trials Award Program–Robert A. Winn, MD, director of the Virginia Commonwealth University’s Massey Comprehensive Cancer Center–is leading the nation in establishing a 21st-century model for promoting diversity, equity, and inclusion in medicine workforce, eliminating health disparities, mentoring upcoming leaders in health, and spearheading interdisciplinary approaches to research.
Dr. Winn also serves as the Chair of the Winn Awards’ National Advisory Committee.
Funding Partners
The Robert A. Winn Diversity in Clinical Trial Award Program is made possible by the generous contributions of our funders.
Implementation Partners
The following organizations provide implementation for the Robert A. Winn Diversity in Clinical Trial Award Program.
Implementation Collaborators
Team
The Winn Awards are supported by a team based at Virginia Commonwealth University’s Massey Comprehensive Cancer Center.
Joy L. Jones, PhD
Executive Director, Winn Awards
Rebekah Broad
Executive Assistant
MK Williams-Sink, M.A.
Director of Communication & Marketing, Winn Awards
Ali Gemma, MPH
Program Director, Winn CDA
Nicholette Espinosa
Sr. Program Coordinator, Winn CDA
Rosa Roncales, MAT
Program Coordinator, Winn CDA
Caitlin Wall, MS
Program Coordinator, Winn CDA
Desiree Y. Vasquez
Program Director, Winn CIPP
Katelyn Evans
Program Coordinator, Winn CIPP
Allison McLarin, M.Ed
Program Coordinator, Winn CIPP
National Advisory Committee
CHAIR
Robert A. Winn, MD
- Director, Massey Comprehensive Cancer Center
- Senior Associate Dean for Cancer Innovation
- Professor, Division of Pulmonary Disease and Critical Care Medicine
- Virginia Commonwealth University
MEMBERS
Leon Bernal-Mizrachi, MD
Emory University School of Medicine; Grady Health Systems
Associate Professor, Department of Hematology and Medical Oncology; Service Chief, Hematology and Medical Oncology; Associate Director, Hematology and Medical Oncology Fellowship Program
Glenn Dillon, PhD
American Heart Association
National Vice President of Research and Grants
Margaret Foti, PhD, MD (HC)
American Association for Cancer Research
Chief Executive Officer
Sharon Hanlon, MSN
Bristol Myers Squibb
Head of Clinical Trial Engagement
Roy S. Herbst, MD, PhD
Yale Comprehensive Cancer Center; Yale School of Medicine
Ensign Professor of Medicine; Professor of Pharmacology; Chief of Medical Oncology; Director, Thoracic Oncology Research Program; Associate Director for Translational Research
Clifford A. Hudis, MD, FACP, FASCO
American Society of Clinical Oncology
Chief Executive Officer
Joy L. Jones, PhD
VCU Massey Comprehensive Cancer Center
Executive Director, Winn Awards
Gail Kerr, MD
Howard University
Howard University Hospital Chief of Rheumatology; Professor of Medicine
Jamie Langley, RN, MSN
Parexel Academy
Global Head
Patricia LoRusso, DO
Yale School of Medicine
Professor of Medicine; Chief, Experimental Therapeutics; Associate Cancer Center Director; Experimental Therapeutics
Jill Massey, PharmD, MBA, BCMAS
Gilead Sciences
Vice President, Global Medical Strategic Operations
Giselle Melendez, MD
Wake Forest School of Medicine
Assistant Professor, Cardiology
Ruben A. Mesa, MD, FACP
Enterprise Cancer Service Line Atrium Health
President, Enterprise Cancer Service Line Atrium Health; Executive Director, Atrium Health Wake Forest Baptist Comprehensive Cancer Center; Enterprise Senior Vice President Atrium Health; Vice Dean for Cancer Programs, Wake Forest School of Medicine; Professor of Medicine Wake Forest School of Medicine
Lucio Miele, MD, PhD
LSU School of Medicine
Professor and Department Head, LSU School of Medicine, Department of Genetics; Assistant Dean for Translational Science
Director for Inter-Institutional Programs, LSU Stanley Scott Cancer Center; Louisiana Cancer Research Consortium
Cancer Crusaders Endowed Professor in Cancer Research
Edith P. Mitchell, MD, MACP, FCPP
Sidney Kimmel Cancer Center at Jefferson Health
Clinical Professor of Medicine and Medical Oncology, Department of Medical Oncology; Director, Center to Eliminate Cancer Disparities; Associate Director, Diversity Affairs
Jude Ngang, PharmD
Amgen
Executive Director, Representation in Clinical Research (RISE)
Anekwe Onwuanyi, MD, FACC
Association of Black Cardiologists
President of Association of Black Cardiologists; Professor of Medicine/Chief of Cardiology, Morehouse School of Medicine; Advanced Heart Failure Consultant; Medical Director, Grady Hospital Heart Failure Program; Co-Chair, Grady Heart and Vascular Center
Taofeek Owonikoko, MD, PhD
Division Chief, Division of Hematology-Oncology
Director
Amanda Pears Kelly
Chief Executive Officer, Advocates for Community Health; Executive Director, Association of Clinicians for the Underserved
Eliseo Perez-Stable, MD
National Institute on Minority Health and Disparities (NIMHD)
Director
Lori J. Pierce, MD, FASTRO, FASCO
Michigan Medicine, University of Michigan
Professor, Radiation Oncology; Vice Provost for Academic and Faculty Affairs
Ileana Pina, MD, MPH, FACC, FAHA, FHFSA
Jefferson Health
Cardiologist
Amelie G. Ramirez, DrPH, MPH
UT Health San Antonio
Director and Professor, Institute for Health Promotion Research, Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences
Brian Rivers, PhD, MPH
Morehouse School of Medicine
Director, Cancer Health Equity Institute, National Center for Primary Care
Bruce Siegel, MD, MPH
America’s Essential Hospitals
President & CEO
Hannah A. Valantine, MD
Stanford University Medical Center
Professor, Cardiovascular Medicine
Annabelle Santos Volgman, MD, FACC, FAHA
Rush University
McMullan-Eybel Chair of Excellence in Clinical Cardiology; Professor of Medicine, Rush College of Medicine; Medical Director, Rush Heart Center for Women, Rush University Medical Center
Donald K. Warne, MD, MPH
Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health
Co-Director, Center for Indigenous Health; Professor, Public Health
Karen Winkfield, MD, PhD
Meharry-Vanderbilt Alliance, Vanderbilt University Medical Center
Executive Director
Winston Wong, MD, FAACP
UCLA Fielding School of Public Health
Scholar-in-Residence, UCLA Kaiser Permanente Center for Health Equity
