Massey Membership Policy:

The Membership Policy provides guidelines for membership at the Massey Comprehensive Cancer Center (Massey). It defines the eligibility criteria, benefits, responsibilities, and application process for becoming a Massey member. In addition, the Membership Policy provides a clear delineation between Massey Research and Associate members. The goal of the Membership policy is to make applicant and members aware of their role within Massey and ensuring that actively contribute to Massey's mission.

Massey Membership Process: 

1. Online Application: Membership applications are collected through the Massey online membership application portal
2. Administrative Review: Membership applications are screened by Massey administration to ensure that the applicants meet the minimum standards for membership consideration.
3. Program Leader Review: Following the administrative review, membership applications are reviewed by a relevant program co-leader to ensure that the applicant would fit within the aims of the program and to provide a initial membership category assignment.
4. Scientific Steering Review: New applications are reviewed at monthly Massey Scientific Steering Committee (SSC) meetings. Each application is presented and discussed with Massey Director having the final authority to approve or disapprove membership.

Membership Categories and Criteria:

Research member (CCSG member)

Research members are full-time faculty actively participating in basic, translational, clinical, or cancer prevention and control cancer research. Research members must meet at least one of the following criteria:

• Principal investigators (PIs) whose cancer-focused/relevant research is funded from a peer-reviewing agency or if from a non-peer-reviewing agency, must be a minimum two-year award with at least $100K direct costs/year, and/or
• Investigators who play a significant role as a co-investigator with other Massey members as evidenced by co-investigator status on externally-funded, cancer-focused/relevant research grants (minimum average of 50% effort in the preceding three years), and/or
• PIs on a cancer-focused/relevant NIH K-award or other career-development award, and/or
• PIs on an Massey-sponsored, interventional, investigator-initiated clinical trial and/or
• Massey clinical investigators who significantly enroll patients per year to interventional trials, and/or
• Faculty who serve in a Massey leadership role or as key personnel in an Massey-supported shared resource

Associate member (non-Cancer Center Support Grant member)

• Associate members are full-time VCU faculty who may contribute to the mission of the cancer center, but do not yet meet the criteria for research membership.

Membership Responsibilities and Benefits:

Based on research interests, research members and associate members are assigned to one of Massey’s three research programs: Cancer Biology, Developmental Therapeutics and Cancer Prevention and Control. Both research and associate members are encouraged to participate in Center-sponsored research events, symposia and seminars, as well as other appropriate Center activities.

Research member responsibilities

• Work with other Massey members to develop programmatic and interdisciplinary research that further the scientific goals of the center and lead to collaborative publications and research grants
• Participate in Massey-led events including research program meetings, retreats, seminars, committees and disease working group meetings
• Review grant applications received under Massey’s intramural funding opportunities
• Acknowledge use of Massey space, Massey-supported shared resources and Massey pilot research funding in cancer-related publications and presentations
• Provide data required to maintain the NCI Cancer Center Support Grant (e.g., personal demographic data, research information and progress, trainee/mentorship history, clinical trials information and accruals, other support, publications, CVs and biosketches)
• If appropriate, serve as a mentor in Massey’s Faculty Development Program
• Participate in Massey-led cancer research education efforts, including appropriate symposia, cancer center curricula for fellows, graduate students and postdoctoral students, as well as undergraduate programs and community education
• Participate in Massey-led community outreach and engagement opportunities

Research member benefits

• Eligible for allocation of cancer center space, for cancer-related activities
• Eligible to apply for pilot project funding and other intramural funding offered by Massey
• Eligible for Massey-supported bridge funding for research support
• Access to Massey-supported shared resources at subsidized member rates
• Access to administrative support, including scientific writing, for the development of grant proposals, scientific manuscripts and clinical trial protocols

Associate member benefits

• Eligible for Massey’s Faculty Development Program
• Inclusion in Massey distribution lists on funding opportunities, cancer news, symposia and seminar announcements