Dr. Evan J. White Receives NIH Director’s Pioneer Award for Innovative Research Collaboration with the Shawnee Tribe

Tulsa, Okla. – (August 7, 2023) – An innovative collaborative research project “Kipiyecipakiciipe - Coming Home” between the Laureate Institute for Brain Research (LIBR) in Tulsa, Okla., and the Shawnee Tribe has received funding through the prestigious National Institutes of Health (NIH) Director’s Pioneer Award (DP1 Mechanism) awarded to Dr. Evan J. White, Principal Investigator and Director of Native American Research at LIBR. This partnership aims to establish clinical cultural neuroscience as an indispensable tool in community-driven research to reduce substance misuse and disorder.
 
The goal of the project is to address substance use problems that impact Native American people at higher rates than the general population. “Being involved in traditional ways of life has many benefits, and research shows that reducing and preventing substance use is one benefit,” said White. “Our goal is to use modern clinical neuroscience to help understand the way this impacts the brain to promote substance use recovery and prevention.” The project will combine two important approaches: involving the community to consider cultural perspectives and knowledge; and using neuroscience to understand brain processes relevant for substance use disorders. “By combining these approaches, the project aims to make progress in reducing the disparities in substance use problems and understanding how the brain is involved in addiction and recovery,” added White.
 
To do this, the project will work closely with the Shawnee Tribe, using brain imaging techniques to study how cultural engagement affects the brain and its relationship to substance use. “The Shawnee Tribe will help to define what cultural engagement means for the community,” continued White. “This is important because culture is a complex concept that includes many aspects of people's lives. There is deep cultural knowledge in communities about wellbeing and living a healthy life. In my view, our job as researchers is to use our scientific toolkit to translate this knowledge into data and information that can be used by medical policy makers and providers to promote wellbeing in Native communities.” 

The Shawnee Tribe recognizes that the loss of cultural practices over time has contributed to many health problems, including substance use. As the tribe builds a Behavioral & Mental Health Department aimed at helping to reduce these problems, tribal leadership hopes to ensure Shawnee cultural knowledge and practices play a central role. One key piece of the project is a Community Advisory Board comprised of Shawnee citizens and ceremonial leaders; the board will inform and oversee the research process.
 
“Shawnee folks deserve Shawnee ways of healthcare,” said Chief Ben Barnes. “I think it’s imperative that our cultural knowledge be the bedrock of any health and human services we provide to our people. We’re extremely fortunate to have experts like Dr. White as one of our own, and I can’t wait to see what his research unravels for not only our nation but Indian Country and healthcare in general.”
 
The NIH Director’s Pioneer Award mechanism seeks to identify scientists with high-impact ideas that may be risky or at a stage too early to fare well in the traditional peer review process. The mechanism is designed to support a small number of investigators of exceptional creativity who propose bold and highly innovative research approaches with the potential for high impact on significant problems in any area relevant to NIH. Depending on funding, approximately 7 applications are expected to be funded each year. During the years 2018-2022, the success rate for applicants was 4.5%.
 
“The project's results will provide valuable information on how cultural factors can protect against substance use problems. It will also serve as a model for studying cultural factors in other minority groups, and social determinants of health broadly with the goal of improving health for everyone,” commented White.
 
The research team will be led by principal investigator Evan J. White, Ph.D., Principal Investigator, Director of Native American Research, Director of Electroencephalography Core at LIBR and Research Associate Professor in the Oxley College of Health Sciences at The University of Tulsa. Kyle Miller, Director of Behavior and Mental Health, will be the lead investigator from the Shawnee Tribe and primary liaison between the LIBR team and the Community Advisory Board.

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CONTACT: For more information about the project, contact Evan J. White, Ph.D. at Laureate Institute for Brain Research at ewhite@laureateinstitute.org.
 
ABOUT LAUREATE INSTITUTE FOR BRAIN RESEARCH (LIBR)
Launched in 2009, the Laureate Institute for Brain Research (laureateinstitute.org) is home to a multidisciplinary team of scientists and clinical research staff who apply neuroimaging, genetic, pharmacological, neuropsychological and psychotherapeutic methods to investigate the neurobiology and treatment of psychiatric disorders. LIBR’s creation was supported by The William K. Warren Foundation for the purpose of conducting studies aimed at developing more effective treatments and/or prevention strategies for these disorders. The studies are led by scientists from diverse backgrounds, including psychiatry, psychology, physics, cognitive neuroscience, developmental neuroscience, population neuroscience and genetics, molecular and cellular neurobiology, and computer science.
 
ABOUT THE SHAWNEE TRIBE
The Shawnee Tribe is a sovereign nation of more than 4,000 citizens living across North America and abroad. Tribal headquarters are located in Miami, Oklahoma. For more information, visit shawnee-nsn.gov.