Uncategorized – FIRST Benjamin-Carver Scientists

Before becoming a Benjamin-Carver FIRST Scientist, Taylor Taylor was Tennessee born and raised in Huntsville. Taylor began her academic career at Auburn University with a degree in Health Promotion and Wellness and a Master of Education in Exercise Science. In this spotlight series on the Benjamin-Carver Scientists, we’re giving readers an inside look at the cohort members’ educational history and plans for future research.

For over 20 years, the UAB Minority Health & Health Equity Research Center has been working to translate science into better health for all. Nowhere is the need for such research more evident than in the deep South. To continue working toward health equity, UAB and Tuskegee University recognize the importance of building inclusive excellence at both institutions.

To cultivate this environment, longtime partners—UAB and Tuskegee University—received funding from the National Institutes of Health Common Fund to establish a community of scientists committed to inclusive excellence. Throughout 2023, the Benjamin-Carver FIRST program has actively recruited faculty and welcomed them into their respective peer cluster community.

Meet Taylor Taylor, Ph.D., M.Ed.

Buchanan left her home state to earn a doctorate in Applied Physiology and Kinesiology at the University of Florida, where she graduated in 2020.

Returning to Alabama, Taylor completed her postdoctoral research, funded by the NIH/NIGMS K12 MERIT Institutional Research and Academic Career Development Award, at the UAB Center for Exercise Medicine (UCEM).

During her graduate studies in Alabama and Florida, Taylor was a personal trainer and group fitness instructor. She saw how exercise empowered individuals and improved their physical and emotional health. These experiences inspired a desire to use research to empower more people—especially those experiencing chronic pain.

It was important to her to do her research at UAB because, as Taylor explained, “UAB is centered within a community that is significantly impacted by chronic pain, and thus, I want to be able to support and empower those, particularly older adults, to help manage their pain, maintain their independence, and improve their overall quality of life.

“UAB has a wide range of resources available to foster collaborations and team science necessary for my research.”
Taylor Taylor, Ph.D., M.Ed.

She currently serves as an assistant professor within the Department of Family and Community Medicine and co-leader of the Clinical Research and Admin Team for UCEM. Her research program focuses on chronic pain management in older adults. Specifically, assessing the impact of exercise on neuroinflammation, affect, and pain outcomes in older adults living with fibromyalgia.

Taylor is also a National Institute on Aging Butler-Williams Scholar, a program providing opportunities for junior faculty, researchers, and postdoctoral fellows to gain insight into aging research.

In 2023, Taylor became part of the FIRST cohort of scientists signed to the Benjamin-Carver FIRST program.

“As an early career scientist from a minority background, I saw the FIRST program as an opportunity to gain tools, resources, and support to help me overcome barriers that many face when pursuing a research career in academia and—in the future—help others to do the same,” explained Taylor. “I have gained resource and infrastructure support at the institutional and department levels and also a network of peer support from other minority early career scientists in the FIRST cohort as we progress through our careers.”

Polanka’s interest in medicine came after her dad experienced a health scare when she was 16 and her family was uninsured. It was at this time that Polanka’s interest in how people think about and manage their health began to form. Throughout her academic career, Polanka used the experiences of her past to fuel her curiosity.

In this spotlight series, we’re showcasing the Benjamin-Carver FIRST Scientists, which includes Brittanny Polanka, Ph.D., who had a 4,521 mile journey to the program.

About the FIRST Partnership

It has been widely noted that diversity and inclusion within organizations can bring benefits such as increased levels of innovation and productivity—critical factors in the pursuit of health equity. Nowhere perhaps is this more evident than in biomedical and related research, where issues of trust, respect, and mutual understanding plague relationships among patients, study participants, healthcare providers, and researchers.

To help change this perception, the University of Alabama at Birmingham and Tuskegee University have partnered to create Benjamin-Carver FIRST, a community of scientists committed to inclusive excellence.

Meet Brittanny Polanka, Ph.D.

Originally from Duluth, Minnesota (A), Polanka received her doctorate in Clinical Psychology with an emphasis in Health and Medical Psychology from Indiana University—Purdue University Indianapolis (B). After graduation, she moved to Gainesville (C) where she did an internship with University of Florida. Afterward, in 2020, she relocated to Baltimore, MD (D) to conduct her Postdoctoral Research Fellowship at Johns Hopkins School of Medicine. Finally, in 2021, her academic career took her back home to Minnesota as she began a second Postdoctoral Research Fellowship at the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis (E)—where she complimented her clinical psychology experience with epidemiology and public health. Now, Polanka has been selected to begin her research career as a Benjamin-Carver FIRST scientist at UAB (F).

She explained, “After a crisis of health, one’s story can unfold differently depending on social situations and networks. That’s why I went into cardiovascular behavioral medicine, it’s the intersection of mind and body and I hope to better understand the relationship between the two.”

“I ask questions like, ‘how does insomnia affect someone’s risk for developing cardiovascular disease or experiencing cardiac arrest and how does this affect racial and ethnic minorities,’” Polanka added.

Building a Career in Cardiovascular Research as a FIRST scholar

During her interview process with the UAB Division of Preventive Medicine, a faculty member suggested Polanka apply for the FIRST program as it coincided with her areas of interest and career stage.

Now, as a member of Benjamin-Carver FIRST’s inaugural cohort, Polanka—who has primarily conducted observational epidemiologic research—will continue to explore the mind/body relationship, as well as the implications of racial disparities in the Deep South’s underserved communities. Areas of which have many residents living uninsured and unprotected from a potential crisis.

With the support from UAB and Tuskegee, FIRST scientists such as Polanka have dedicated principal mentors, individual career coaching, group sessions, and professional development opportunities to help facilitate their personal and professional growth.

Polanka looks forward to her future in Birmingham as she says, “I’m excited to get settled into my new home and community.

“As a collaborative, the Benjamin-Carver FIRST program is uniquely positioned to help me network in this new environment. It’s my hope that these connections could lead to exciting intersections—tackling the same problem from a couple different directions.”
Brittanny Polanka, Ph.D.

She added, “Ultimately, as a FIRST scientist, I want to answer the question, ‘If we treat exacerbating factors, can we reduce risk for patients?’”