To further interest in pediatric liver transplantation research in fellows and junior faculty who have expressed an interest in a career in pediatric liver transplantation or to highlight work done by multi-disciplinary members related to pediatric liver transplantation.  This will be fostered through the exposure to the SPLIT program and Principal Investigators (PI) at the SPLIT Annual Meeting, connect with a community of mentors, and present their research and contributions to the field of pediatric liver transplantation.

Awardees will be expected to attend the SPLIT annual meeting and present their research in either poster or oral presentation form during the meeting

This award program includes the following components:

• Free SPLIT Annual Meeting registration
• Grant for reimbursable travel expenses up to $1000 to attend SPLIT
• Networking opportunities at SPLIT

Be a member of SPLIT. If an applicant is not a member of SPLIT, a membership application must be completed on the SPLIT website, https://tts.org/split-members-area/join-split and accepted in order for the award application to be reviewed and considered. The membership application must be initiated prior to the abstract submission deadline.

Trainee:

• Be a trainee at an accredited pediatric gastroenterology, hepatology, transplant hepatology or transplant surgery fellowship program or a discipline associated with transplant (ie anesthesia, ICU).
• Have an expressed interest in pediatric liver transplantation.

Junior Faculty:

• Be a faculty member in pediatric gastroenterology, hepatology, transplant hepatology, transplant surgery, pediatric intensive care, pediatric anesthesia not more than 3 years from the completion of their fellowship at the time of the annual SPLIT meeting. 
• Have an expressed interest in pediatric liver transplantation.

Multi-Disciplinary Team Member:

• Be a multi-disciplinary team member in pediatric gastroenterology, hepatology, transplant hepatology, transplant surgery, pediatric intensive care, pediatric anesthesia, pediatric psychiatry, or a discipline associated with transplant.
• Have an expressed interest in pediatric liver transplantation.

Documentation for application should include:

• Personal Statement of not more than 1 page (Font size 11, single spaced) that describes the applicant’s personal goals relating to pediatric liver transplantation.  Please include a paragraph about your mentor (if applicable) describing their role in this project and in your overall career and interest in pediatric liver transplantation
• Curriculum Vitae (CV)
• A letter of recommendation from the SPLIT center PI or from the fellowship director
• Research or QI or Advocacy Abstract: Abstracts have to be submitted via the meeting management system and follow the general abstract guidelines.
• In order to effectively promote a diverse community, SPLIT would like to encourage any applicants from under-represented, disadvantaged or diverse backgrounds.  If applicable, please include this information in your personal statement.

Submit your application:

Create an account in the meeting management system

• Upload the above-mentioned documents A. - C. in one PDF file under “Award Applications”
• Submit your abstract by January 15 under “My Abstracts”

Should you have any questions, please contact This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

The applicants will be reviewed by the SPLIT Education Committee.  Applicants will be scored 1-5 (low to high) in regard to:

• Clinical Potential in Pediatric Liver Transplantation
• Academic Potential in Pediatric Liver Transplantation
• Research Abstract Relevance to Pediatric Liver Transplantation

Candidate Evaluation Issues to be addressed in the letters of recommendation:

• How long have you known the candidate?
• Please comment on the candidate’s interest in pediatric liver transplantation.
• Please comment on the candidate’s exposure to pediatric liver transplantation and future training plans if applicable.
• What are the perceived goals for the candidate from attending the SPLIT annual meeting?

A diverse and equitable workforce is required to achieve equitable outcomes for pediatric liver transplant patients. This travel grant aims to support diversity, equity and inclusion in the pediatric transplant community by supporting two individuals annually to attend the SPLIT annual meeting.

Ideal and equitable care for diverse patient populations requires a diverse workforce. Between 2015 and 2019, only one of 43 pediatric transplant hepatology fellowship graduates was African American (3%), and four were Hispanic/Latino (11%). Only 5.5% of transplant surgeons are Black, and 8% are Hispanic. Prioritization on the recruitment and retention of diverse multidisciplinary teams are needed to provide the highest quality of care to diverse populations and to best address racial and ethnic health disparities and systemic racism in transplantation. The long-term aim of the SPLIT Travel Grant is to increase the pipeline and retention of individuals underrepresented in medicine and to prioritize health equity in pediatric liver transplantation.

Grant recipients will gain exposure to the SPLIT program and Principal Investigators (PI) at the SPLIT Annual Meeting and connect with a community of mentors.

This award program includes the following components:

• free SPLIT Annual Meeting registration
• grant for reimbursable travel expenses up to $1000 to attend SPLIT
• networking opportunities at SPLIT

• Self-identify as Underrepresented in Medicine such as
  A. The following racial and ethnic groups: American Indian or Alaska Native, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander.
  B. Individuals with disabilities
  C. Individuals from disadvantaged backgrounds, defined as those who meet two or more of the following criteria:
  1. Were or currently are homeless, as defined by the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act (Definition: https://nche.ed.gov/mckinney-vento/);
  2. Were or currently are in the foster care system, as defined by the Administration for Children and Families (Definition: https://www.acf.hhs.gov/cb/focus-areas/foster-care);
  3. Were eligible for the Federal Free and Reduced Lunch Program for two or more years (Definition: https://www.fns.usda.gov/school-meals/income-eligibility-guidelines);
  4. Have/had no parents or legal guardians who completed a bachelor’s degree (see https://nces.ed.gov/pubs2018/2018009.pdf);
  5. Were or currently are eligible for Federal Pell grants (Definition: https://www2.ed.gov/programs/fpg/eligibility.html);
  6. Received support from the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children (WIC) as a parent or child (Definition: https://www.fns.usda.gov/wic/wic-eligibility-requirements).
  7. Grew up in one of the following areas: a) a U.S. rural area, as designated by the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) Rural Health Grants Eligibility Analyzer (https://data.hrsa.gov/tools/rural-health), or b) a Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services-designated Low-Income and Health Professional Shortage Areas (qualifying zipcodes are included in the file). Only one of the two possibilities in #7 can be used as a criterion for the disadvantaged background definition.
• Be a medical student, pediatrics resident, surgery resident or pediatric gastroenterology fellow at an accredited institution at the time of award application.
• Attend the SPLIT annual meeting in its entirety, including the meeting for fellows and program directors.
• Have an expressed interest in pediatric liver transplantation.
• Have a valid passport as the meeting will be held in Washington, DC, USA.

Documentation for application should include:

• Personal Statement of not more than 1 page (Font size 11, single spaced) that describes the applicant’s personal goals relating to pediatric liver transplantation.
• Curriculum Vitae (CV)

Submit your application:

• Create an account in the meeting management system
• Upload the above-mentioned documents as one PDF file under “Award Applications”

Should you have any questions, please contact This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

Application deadline is January 15, 2025.

All applications will be reviewed by the SPLIT Education Committee. The Education Committee will consider whether there is more than one applicant per center, with the priority given to having broad representation across centers. Applicants will be notified by March 2025. 

To Be Eligible for A Scientific Award, An Individual Must: