OVERVIEW
The VCU Institute for Women’s Health (IWH) was one of the first chartered institutes at VCU, approved by the Board of Visitors in 1999, and was designated a university-level Institute in 2021 and renewed in 2024. It is the only community of scholars across VCU that conducts, promotes, and integrates interdisciplinary research, education, and community engagement in women’s health and sex differences. As the central coordinating entity for women’s health at VCU, IWH has been instrumental in identifying new and emerging opportunities and influencing institutional priorities related to women’s health.
IWH leadership founded the VCU Women’s Health Center (WHC) at Stony Point in 1993, which was one of the first multi-disciplinary “one-stop shop” women’s health centers in an academic medical center and has won several national awards for its innovative design serving as a model for other women’s health centers around the country and internationally. IWH leadership also founded VCU’s annual women’s health conference, which is now in its 31st year and grew to become one of the premier interdisciplinary women’s health conferences in the country. Dr. Kornstein also serves as Editor-in-Chief of the Journal of Women’s Health since 2005.
Since its establishment, IWH has achieved major accomplishments in the areas of research, education, and community engagement and has increased the University’s visibility as a national leader in women’s health. In 2003, the Institute was designated by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office on Women’s Health as one of 20 National Centers of Excellence in Women’s Health. In 2025, the Institute had 194 affiliate faculty and 17 associate members representing 18 schools and 61 departments from across VCU and VCU Health Systems.
MISSION
The mission of the VCU Institute for Women’s Health is to advance interdisciplinary research and provide education and training in women’s health and sex differences, foster community engagement, support equity for diverse women in science, and promote standards of excellence in women’s health care toward the goal of improving the health of women across the lifespan.
VISION
The VCU Institute for Women’s Health is a dynamic leader for the university’s collective efforts in women’s health and a national model of excellence.
Goals
- Research: Develop, support and facilitate interdisciplinary basic, clinical, behavioral, translational, and community-engaged research in women’s health and sex differences by identifying and pursuing funding opportunities, fostering collaborations across schools and departments, facilitating research development groups, mentoring junior investigators, and providing opportunities for research dissemination.
- Education: Develop education and training programs in women’s health for professionals, faculty, students, and the community.
- Community Engagement: Engage community partners to create opportunities for women’s health research and education, support dissemination of culturally relevant health information, and increase linkage to healthcare services and ongoing research in women’s health and sex differences.