Leadership Lessons: Developing Mentoring Infrastructure for GEMSSTAR Scholars

Through the National Institute on Aging's (NIA's) “Grants for Early Medical/Surgical Specialists” Transition to Aging Research (GEMSSTAR) U13 grant, the NIA and the American Geriatrics Society (AGS) developed three transdisciplinary research conferences with a focus on mentoring and leadership skills development. The NIA's GEMSSTAR program evolved from two earlier programs, the AGS' Dennis W. Jahnigen and the Association of Specialty Professors’ T. Franklin Williams Career Development Scholars Awards. It supports the continued cultivation of the next generation of medical and surgical specialty researchers with an interest in aging research. The award requires both geriatrics and specialty mentoring and currently provides up to $150,000 a year in direct support to scholars. Additionally, the award requires that scholars have a professional development plan that is complementary to the GEMSSTAR award. The U13 conferences, focused on frailty, models of aging, and cognition, brought together GEMSSTAR scholars, former scholars, innovators, mentors, and leaders in aging research, the specialties, and geriatric medicine. This article describes the themes of each of the GEMSSTAR U13 conferences and highlights the lessons learned on mentoring, team science, aging research networks, and work-life balance. We plan to use these lessons to guide the support we provide to the growing group of emerging leaders who are poised to lead the transdisciplinary research network of the future. J Am Geriatr Soc 67:650–656, 2019.