Hampton Roads Biomedical Research Consortium - HRBRC

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Hampton Roads Biomedical Research Consortium - HRBRC

HRBRC’s objective is to address health disparitie

The Hampton Roads Biomedical Research Consortium (HRBRC) is a state-sponsored partnership between Old Dominion University, Eastern Virginia Medical School, Sentara Healthcare, and Norfolk State University. A dynamic community-based university research collaborative with a mission that drives health equity and economic strength in Eastern Virginia.

12/10/2025

We're excited to be sharing our space at HQ this week with Old Dominion University's Center for Mission Engineering and the Australian-based company, Kompozition!

Kompozition provides a systems of systems approach to mission engineering that enables organizations to de-risk technical projects and maintain delivered systems.

Over the course of the week, Kompozition's Chief Scientist, Dr. Dan Powell, is leading training on the company's Digital Mission Engineering platform.

The HRBRC is pleased to share its space for the training and eager to support its participating organizations and community!

Interested in collaborating or hosting a workshop at the HRBRC? Follow this link to get in touch: https://hrbrc.org/contact/

12/08/2025

The American Geophysical Union (AGU) 2025 Conference is coming up December 15th-19th at the New Orleans Ernest N. Morial Convention Center!

This year, two Old Dominion University researchers with the Joint Institute on Advanced Computing for Environmental Studies will be presenting their work.

On December 18th, Dr. Jonathan Colen will be presenting, "Learning How Acute Air Quality Deterioration Exacerbates Pediatric Asthma in Hampton Roads, Virginia". This work, done in collaboration with researchers at Children's Hospital of The King's Daughters (CHKD), Boston Children’s Hospital, Jefferson Lab, and ODU, employs machine learning - a subset of artificial intelligence in which machines use advanced computing, algorithms, and statistical models to perform tasks and continuously improve through learning and experience - to understand factors impacting pediatric asthma in Hampton Roads.

On December 19th, Dr. Chetan Kumar will be presenting, "Temporal Super-Resolution for Flood Forecasting using Deep Learning in Norfolk, Virginia." This work, done in collaboration with researchers at Jefferson Lab, ODU, and University of Virginia, leverages deep learning - a subset of machine learning that uses multi-layer artificial neural networks to learn from enormous data sets - to develop advanced flood prediction models for Norfolk, Virginia.

Good luck and congratulations to our researchers and collaborators!

To learn more about the conference, workshops, or to reserve your spot, follow the links below.

Registration Link: https://www.agu.org/annual-meeting

12/03/2025

NeurIPS 2025 is officially underway through December 7th in San Diego, California!

The conference features invited talks, demonstrations, and presentations of peer-reviewed research. This year, Old Dominion University Research Scientist with the Joint Institute on Advanced Computing for Environmental Studies, Dr. Chetan Kumar, is presenting "AI-Driven Temporal Super-Resolution for Flooding Prediction in Norfolk, Virginia” during the "Tackling Climate Change with Machine Learning" workshop on Dec 7th.

This work, done in collaboration with researchers at ODU, Jefferson Lab, and the University of Virginia, uses deep learning and specialized neural networks to generate high-frequency, detailed time-series flood data that improves flood predictions in Norfolk, Virginia.

Good luck and congratulations!

To learn more about the conference, workshops, or to reserve your spot, follow the links below.

Conference Link: https://neurips.cc/Conferences/2025
Workshop Link: https://www.climatechange.ai/events/neurips2025

12/01/2025

Here are some snapshots of our recent workshop with Chesapeake Public Schools at HRBRC HQ!

Roughly 30 students visited us and explored the world of advanced computing. They participated in three hands-on mini-workshops organized and led by team members Dr. Jonathan Colen, Dr. Achyut Paudel, Patrick Ball, and Caleb Ralph.

We had a great time teaching students firsthand about how technology drives research and real-world impact through the innovative work underway at the HRBRC!!

11/27/2025

Warm Thanksgiving wishes from all of us at the HRBRC!

We’re grateful to every member of our team, our partners, and our community who fuel and uplift our mission to drive health, research, and innovation in and beyond Hampton Roads.

11/24/2025

Update on our Infant Lumbar Puncture Training Model project with the Uniformed Services University of Health Sciences and the Sentara Center for Healthcare Simulation and Immersive Learning!

In the project’s first phase, HRBRC team members Patrick Ball and Caleb Ralph used the Stratasys J850 3D printer to develop and print a clear, silicon-encased model of the infant spine, which is equipped to simulate the lumbar puncture procedure and even aspirate fluid.

The team has since been working on the design for the entire infant training model, which suspends the infant spine designed in phase 1 in a 3D-printed mold and fills the mold with silicon.

Stay tuned!

11/19/2025

This week's Community Partner highlight is on the Children's Hospital of The King's Daughters (CHKD)!

CHKD is the only full-service, freestanding children's hospital in Virginia and the heart of a comprehensive pediatric health system serving the medical, surgical, and mental health needs of children throughout Hampton Roads and surrounding regions.

As a key Community Partner, CHKD clinicians and researchers work via the HRBRC with researchers and scientists across Norfolk State University, Old Dominion University, and Sentara Health on research initiatives in pediatric asthma and respiratory illness, air quality, and children's mental health, among others. CHKD has also long worked with and continues to work with other community organizations and HRBRC affiliates across myriad initiatives that strengthen community bonds and promote the health and well-being of children and their families.

To learn more about CHKD follow this link: https://www.chkd.org/

11/17/2025

Interested in getting involved with the HRBRC?

Whether you’re a researcher, innovator, student, community organization, simply curious, or somewhere in between, the HRBRC is always looking to connect and explore opportunities that address health disparities, foster industry and institutional collaboration, and strengthen biohealth innovation throughout our region.

Follow the link below to connect!

https://hrbrc.org/get-involved/

11/12/2025

This is the perfect time of year to wander the Elizabeth River Trail, Norfolk's 10.5 mile trail that runs through the city's historic neighborhoods and along the waterfront, connecting neighborhoods and businesses, promoting recreational activity, and offering opportunities to learn about our local landscape.

Beginning at Norfolk State University and ending near Lambert's Point Coal Terminal, we love that the ERT serves as a natural connector to the HRBRC's Participating Organizations and that it demonstrates how closely research, innovation, and community spaces are connected.

To learn more about the Elizabeth River Trail, follow this link: https://elizabethriver.org/

11/10/2025

This Wednesday, our team is hosting 9th-grade science students from Chesapeake Public Schools to learn about advanced computing, additive manufacturing, and 3D modeling at HRBRC HQ!

Students will hear from and work with research professors and faculty from the Joint Institute on Advanced Computing for Environmental Studies as well as team members from the HRBRC.

Stay tuned to see what they learn & create!

10/23/2025

Milton Brown, MD, PhD - Senior Associate Vice President of Research at the Macon & Joan Brock Virginia Health Sciences, formerly Eastern Virginia Medical School, at Old Dominion University - was recently inducted into the Virginia Academy of Science, Engineering and Medicine (VASEM), a non-profit, non-partisan network of leading experts in science, engineering, and medicine who provide rigorous analytical, technical, and scientific expertise to inform key policies in the Commonwealth.

Dr. Brown’s distinguished career as a physician-scientist-educator blends synthetic chemistry, medicine, oncology, neuroscience, and pharmacology and is defined by groundbreaking innovations in experimental therapeutics and drug discovery, over 60 patents in his name, over 100 authored peer-reviewed publications, prominent contributions to biotech, and a steadfast commitment to student mentorship and institutional excellence.

Congratulations on your induction into VASEM, Dr. Brown!

To learn more, follow this link: https://www.odu.edu/article/october-2025-faculty-and-staff-accolades

10/15/2025

Congratulations to Dr. Khan Iftekharuddin, ODU Research Professor and Faculty, who was recently awarded $2.3M from the National Institutes of Health for his research in using artificial intelligence, machine learning, and computer modeling to detect brain cancer recurrence through less invasive strategies and inform treatment, monitoring, and management.

Dr. Iftekharuddin's award from the NIH builds on his extensive research portfolio and multi-industry and multi-disciplinary contributions. Among them are his 2014 award for air quality measurement using LiDAR, his 2016 award from the National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering to analyze and track brain tumors using quantitative image modeling, his 2017 award for anthropometrics-based human identity recognition using graph-based representations and multi-fidelity machine learning, and his 2022 award from the HRBRC for using artificial intelligence and machine learning to detect atypical Alzheimer’s disease cases.

Congratulations to Dr. Iftekharuddin; we're eager to follow along!

To learn more, read the full article here: https://www.odu.edu/article/odu-awarded-23m-nih-grant-to-improve-detection-of-brain-tumor-recurrence-ai-and-machine

Address

1070 University Boulevard , Suite 2105
Portsmouth, VA
23703

Website

http://hrbrc.org/

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