Passaic Today

Montclair State University Provost and Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs, Junius Gonzales, has been appointed as one of five advisors to the Common Fund of the National Institutes of Health (NIH). The initiative aims to support bold scientific programs that catalyze discovery across all biomedical and behavioral research.

Gonzales will be part of the advisor consultant team for the NIH Common Fund’s Faculty Institutional Recruitment for Sustainable Transformation (FIRST) program. The program focuses on enhancing and maintaining cultures of inclusive excellence in the biomedical research community.

The National Institutes of Health, a renowned American medical research organization, invests nearly $48 billion annually in research to improve health outcomes and reduce illness and disability. Gonzales joins other distinguished leaders as advisors for the Common Fund, fostering collaboration among investigators and various NIH Institutes and Centers for innovative research.

In his new role, Gonzales will provide critical scientific and managerial insight to assist the NIH’s Office of Strategic Coordination staff, the Fund’s Working Group, and program awardees for the FIRST program in evaluating the value produced for the biomedical research community.

Reflecting on his appointment, Gonzales expressed his commitment to diversity in research and his pride in contributing to the improvement of health and well-being: “The National Institutes of Health is demonstrating, through its innovative Common Fund approach, its commitment to enhancing diversity in its research investigator work force... I am honored and humbled to be invited to serve on such a team of consulting advisors for such an important endeavor led by the National Institutes of Health.”

With a distinguished 30-year career encompassing roles as a faculty member, researcher, and senior administrator, Gonzales has a strong background in mental health research and has secured substantial funding for his work. He has published over 50 scholarly papers and book chapters and has actively contributed to enhancing faculty recruitment and success at Montclair State University.