"Postdoctoral Innovation Fellow, Health Sciences"

Job Details

Unit: Office Of The Provost

Department: Office of Innovation & Strategic Design

Department Summary: The Office of Innovation and Strategic Design at Virginia Commonwealth University builds strategic partnerships that drive academic innovation, student success, and institutional impact. Led by the Vice Provost for Innovation and Strategic Design, the office advances front end innovation initiatives and works closely with deans and academic units to develop high-value collaborations with corporations, nonprofits, and community organizations.

Through initiatives like VCU’s award winning Shift Labs, we connect students and faculty with real-world challenges, co-create solutions with external partners, and expand access to experiential learning opportunities. By aligning academic strengths with industry and community needs, we help VCU generate new programs, revenue streams, and national recognition.

Duties & Responsibilities:

Making change in the fields of Health and Health Sciences require innovation, collaboration, and the application of modern strategies to guide decision making. The Virginia Commonwealth University Office of Innovation and Strategic Design seeks a Postdoctoral Innovation Fellow to support VCU’s Shift Health Lab - a joint initiative between the Office of the Provost and VCU Health Sciences. The postdoctoral fellow will work closely with faculty, staff, and students as well as senior administrators across the enterprise to advance high impact innovation projects and catalyze institutional knowledge of innovation and design thinking in healthcare.

There will be considerable opportunities for the postdoctoral fellow to participate in the development and implementation of projects, project management, data collection and analysis, academic scholarship, stakeholder management, training facilitation, and grant writing. The postdoctoral fellowship is for a 12-month period, with the option to renew for additional years, contingent on performance and funding. The fellow will lead projects in various units in the VCU Health Sciences eco-system. The position will report to Dr. Garret Westlake, Vice Provost for Innovation and Strategic Design and Professor of Management and Entrepreneurship in the VCU School of Business and co-advised by Carolyn Hawley, Director of the Virginia Partnership for Gaming and Health. The position may have an affiliate faculty appointment in a specific college or school related to their area of academic expertise.

Unit Descriptions:

Office of Innovation and Strategic Design

The Office of Innovation and Strategic Design creates strategic partnerships and research-driven training programs that bridge higher education and industry, enhancing student experiential learning and internship experiences, developing leaders who can bring about transformative change, and driving sustainable economic impact. Done well, our work raises the visibility of VCU and its students with potential partners and employers, empowers academic units to accelerate and improve their experiential learning offerings, and develops award winning leadership and economic development models and programs adopted by other institutions.

We explore the future of work through multiple perspectives and disciplines. We design opportunities for creators, entrepreneurs, and lifelong learners to create value and sustainable impact. We empower clients to anticipate and thrive in the future by designing strategic partnerships that educate, inspire innovation, and drive real-world testing—all with the goal of achieving sustainable economic growth and transformative societal impact.

The Virginia Partnership for Gaming & Health (VPGH)

The Virginia Partnership for Gaming & Health (VPGH) is housed within the Department of Rehabilitation Counseling in the College of Health Professions at Virginia Commonwealth University. VPGH serves as the state’s leading hub for research, education, and outreach focused on gambling-related harm and responsible play. In collaboration with the Virginia Council on Problem Gambling, the Virginia Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Services, and the Virginia Lottery, the Partnership leads statewide initiatives in prevention, treatment & recovery, workforce training, and research. Current projects include population-level prevalence studies, clinical outcomes research, program evaluation, and development of data-driven public health strategies.

VPGH offers a dynamic, interdisciplinary research environment that bridges academia, behavioral health systems, and public policy. Post-doctoral fellows will have the opportunity to contribute to ongoing projects, design independent studies, and collaborate with state and national partners working to reduce gambling-related harms and promote healthier communities across Virginia.

Virginia Long-Term Care Clinician Network (LTC-CN)

The Virginia Long-Term Care Clinician Network (LTC-CN) brings together medical directors and advanced practice clinicians working across the Commonwealth in nursing homes, assisted living facilities, and other congregate care settings. The LTC-CN is a peer learning collaborative, providing a central mode of communication for post-acute and long-term care (PALTC) clinicians, free resources, and access to a monthly newsletter and virtual forum with continuing education.

Originating from needs during the COVID-19 pandemic, the program has expanded in its scope, facilitating communication of vital information, such as the most up-to-date clinical guidelines, and robust discussion on timely topics affecting PALTC clinicians throughout the Commonwealth. Today, the LTC-CN is managed by a project team with members from VCU's School of Medicine, College of Health Professions, and the Virginia Center on Aging.

Minimum Qualifications:

• Demonstrated ability to work in and foster an environment of respect, professionalism and civility with a population of faculty, staff, and students from all backgrounds and experiences, or a commitment to do so as a staff member at VCU.
• A Ph.D. or terminal degree in the health sciences (e.g. medicine, nursing, public health, health services research etc.)
• Experience in medical research, in particular mental health subjects
• Strong attention to detail and project management experience
• Ability to establish working relationships and trust between individuals, groups, and organizations
• An entrepreneurial spirit and comfortability with ambiguity and changing priorities
• Creative problem-solving skills, learning agility and ability to adapt to change;
• Comfort working with emerging technologies and their economic/social implications;
• Excellent oral communication and community engagement skills

Preferred Qualifications:

• Experience facilitating workshops or training programs
• Experience working with stakeholders outside of academia
• Familiar with human centered design or related methodologies
• Experience leading cross-department change projects in higher education Experience in healthcare innovation
• Ability to perform in a fast-paced environment
• Teaching at the undergraduate and graduate level
• Excellent writing skills as evidenced by publications or grant‐writing experience

Priority Application Deadline: December 31, 2025 | 5:00pm

Salary Range: $55,000 - $60,000

Benefits: All full-time university staff are eligible for VCU’s robust benefits package that includes comprehensive health benefits, paid annual and holiday leave granted up front, generous tuition benefits, retirement planning and savings options, tax-deferred annuity and cash match programs, employee discounts, well-being resources, abundant opportunities for career development and advancement, and more.

FLSA Exemption Status: Exempt

Hours per Week: 40

Restricted Position: No

ORP Eligible: No

Flexible Work Arrangement: Hybrid

Contact Information: Contact Name: Stephanie Danis, Executive Assistant to the Vice Provost for Innovation and Strategic Design Contact Email: sdanis@vcu.edu