Now in its final stages, the M-RISP program at San Francisco State has successfully enhanced the university's institutional capacity to conduct mental health research projects that are responsive to the needs of ethnic minority populations in the US in general and NIMH priorities in particular.

Situated as it is within CCI, an academic institution committed to ethnic diversity and responsive to the needs of disenfranchized communities, this particular MRISP has been well equiped to focus on the mental health disparities among ethnic minority communities. In addition, we have aimed to increase the number of ethnic minority Principal Investigators funded by NIMH through R01 and R03 mechanisms.

CCI founder Rafael M. Diaz, Ph.D., directed the M-RISP and its core activities. In the fall of each academic year, CCI conducted a faculty-wide competition in order to select 4-6 M-RISP Faculty Fellows. To enter the competition, interested faculty submited a 1-2 page description of a research topic/research question relevant to mental health research. Research topics that address mental health disparities in ethnic minority communities were particularly encouraged. In addition, faculty included a copy of their C.V. and a letter form their department chair agreeing to a 50% teaching load reduction (paid by the M-RISP program) for the following Spring semester. The selected faculty fellows received 50% teaching reduction for the Spring semester, a $4,000 stipend for proposal development activities, and a $1,500 honorarium to be given to their selected outside mentor.

Selected faculty members commited to participate in a proposal development group and complete, by July 15 of that year, the final draft of a research proposal to be submitted extramurally at a later date. In addition, all Fellows were paired with external mentors from institutions around the country whose significant contributions to their disciplines match the fellows’ primary areas of research interest.