Rubio Named NIGMS Division Director
Dr. Mercedes Rubio was selected as the new director of the National Institute of General Medical Sciences (NIGMS) Division for Research Capacity Building (DRCB).
Rubio, a medical sociologist by training, was most recently a branch chief in NIGMS’ Division of Training and Workforce Development, where she managed research training, scientific conferences and research on intervention grants. She also served as program director for the NIH Diversity Program Consortium’s National Research Mentoring Network.
DRCB has four major grant components: Institutional Development Awards, Native American Research Centers for Health, Support for Research Excellence and Science Education Partnership Awards. These programs support research, career development and research infrastructure improvements in institutions, states, and jurisdictions that have historically received low levels of NIH support.
“DRCB supports many important programs that fund research and capacity-building initiatives that are key to moving science forward, particularly in under-resourced states and institutions,” said NIGMS Director Dr. Jon Lorsch. “Dr. Rubio’s vast experience in managing a range of research training and capacity-building programs, coupled with her strong commitment to broadening participation in biomedical research, make her an ideal selection for this role.”
Prior to becoming a branch chief at NIGMS, Rubio was a section chief in the Division of Clinical Innovations at the National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences, where she managed Clinical and Translational Science Award (CTSA) grants and oversaw CTSA consortium-wide clinical and translational science workforce efforts. Before that, she managed grant portfolios at NIGMS and the National Institute of Mental Health. She has contributed her expertise on several NIH-wide efforts, including the Advisory Committee to the Director’s working group on the physician-scientist workforce, the Training Advisory Committee and the UNITE-E Committee implementation team.
Rubio earned her bachelor’s degree in sociology from California State University and her Ph.D. in sociology at the University of Michigan, where she also performed postdoctoral research at the Institute for Social Research and School of Nursing.