$7.4 Million in Grants Will Help Chicago Region Respond to COVID-19, Prepare for Future Pandemics

The Walder Foundation, in collaboration with public health officials, launches new research initiative to enhance COVID surveillance, expand testing, and help prepare to lessen the impact of future pandemics

SKOKIE, IL (October 13, 2022) – The Walder Foundation, an Illinois-based private family foundation focused in part on funding work in science innovation, today announced $7.4 million in grant funding for the Chicago Coronavirus Assessment Network (Chicago CAN) initiative. A unique collaboration with state, local and county health officials, and the scientific community, Chicago CAN will support projects that aim to generate COVID-19 data and insights that will help better understand the transmission of the SARS-CoV-2 virus and inform public health policy.

“Our support of Chicago CAN brings together Chicago’s powerful scientific research community with public health officials and community leaders to collaborate in addressing the need for better data, more testing in underserved communities, as well as longer-term insights about how to prepare and respond to pandemics,” said Elizabeth Walder, president and executive director of the Walder Foundation. 

The Walder Foundation’s focus on science innovation funding stems from the interests of founder Dr. Joseph Walder, who spent his career developing breakthrough technologies in academic research before founding a biotech company that produces synthetic DNA and RNA for life science research and industry.

SARS-CoV-2 was not detected in time to prevent the devastating health, economic and social impacts that we are experiencing today. 

“The idea behind Chicago CAN is two-fold: first, to identify and provide actionable data for public health decision-makers to address the most pressing needs during the current pandemic, and second, to lay the groundwork for the potential development of a combined viral research and public health platform that can serve as an early warning system using ongoing research to prevent future outbreaks from becoming pandemics,” said Dr. Sandra Laney, senior program director of science innovation at the Walder Foundation.

“Since the beginning of the COVID-19 global pandemic, public health officials have collaborated on many levels to combat this novel virus and Chicago CAN builds upon this spirit of collaboration,” said Dr. Ngozi Ezike, Director of the Illinois Department of Public Health. “By bringing together funders, public health, research and community to inform innovative solutions, we are better prepared to address the needs of communities across the state – not only now, but to inform public health policy far into the future.”

In early May, the Walder Foundation began conversations with leaders from the Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH), the Chicago Department of Public Health (CDPH), and the Cook County Department of Public Health (CCDPH) to identify urgent areas of research, including understanding the disparities in populations impacted by the virus, transmission in school children, mechanisms for early detection, strategic testing and contact tracing.

The Walder Foundation issued an open RFP for Chicago CAN, and identified eight projects for funding that range from basic science to strategic testing in underserved communities. All of the projects have the potential to impact the COVID-19 crisis now and in the long term. While each grant is to one lead research organization, grantees have developed collaborations with a wide variety of partners – ranging from other academic and medical institutions across the Chicago region, community-based organizations, water reclamation districts, faith communities and more – to further the impact and reach of their programs and research.

“While COVID-19 has no geographic boundaries, it’s clear not all communities experience the pandemic in the same way,” said Dr. Allison Arwady, commissioner of the Chicago Department of Public Health. “Many of these grant recipients have developed innovative approaches for how to address disparities better and meet the needs of our neighborhoods that have been hardest hit by this disease.”

“By connecting science, research and public health to communities, we believe we have an opportunity to make a real difference,” said Dr. Rachel Rubin, co-lead and senior medical officer at the Cook County Department of Public Health. “We are grateful to have support from private philanthropy and outstanding research institutions to further what we can do as healthcare providers and public health leaders to respond to the pandemic.”

Below find the complete list of grant recipients and their projects:

Rapid Detection and Diagnosis of COVID-19 at Home and Point-Of-Care

Lead institution: The University of Chicago

This project looks to build a new COVID-19 testing device for rapid and cost-effective detection of SARS-CoV-2. The researchers want to make testing possible at home or point-of-care, without needing to send the samples away to a lab; instead, anyone would be able to see the results for themselves, similar to an at-home blood sugar test. By also combining detection of current SARS-CoV-2 infection with the measurement of antibodies against the virus, the device could dramatically change how we test for this virus.

COVID Equity Response Collaborative Loyola (CERCL): Understanding COVID-19 Transmission in Communities of Color

Lead institution: Loyola University Chicago

The COVID-19 pandemic has disproportionately affected communities of color. This initiative will bring increased SARS-CoV-2 testing to underserved African American and Hispanic/Latinx communities in suburban Cook County and provide social support to those directly impacted by the pandemic. By also applying social network analysis and antibody surveillance testing, the study will help us better understand what factors promote or hinder COVID-19 spread.

Chicago Can Beat COVID-19: Investigating the Efficacy of a Novel Self-testing Approach and Persuasive mHealth Technology in an Underserved, Community-based Sample

Lead institution: University of Illinois at Chicago

An overall goal of Chicago CAN is to support the ongoing collection of community samples – both from those with and without symptoms – as part of an early warning system to detect new viral threats and stop them from becoming full-blown pandemics. This project will support expanded viral testing, contact tracing, and development of an educational app. The team will also use an innovative SARS-CoV-2 saliva test that can be collected conveniently at home and sent to the lab for analysis, providing an additional way of reaching underserved populations that might not otherwise be reached.

Surveillance, Transmission Dynamics, and Disparities of COVID-19 Among Chicago Children

Lead institution: Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago

This project will expand coronavirus testing in Chicago children who have symptoms of COVID-19, as well as their close contacts. The researchers will identify pediatric COVID-19 hotspots and also analyze genetic sequences of the virus to uncover the linkages and transmission patterns among COVID-19 patients. The team will also deploy mobile health units to monitor coronavirus infection in schools to further shed light on the role of children in SARS-CoV-2 transmission. Knowledge gained from this project will inform public health on how to safely reopen schools and the economy. 

Chicago Prototype Coronavirus Assessment Network Node (PCANN)

Lead institution: University of Illinois at Chicago (Discovery Partners Institute)

This project looks to create a Chicago-based wastewater surveillance system for SARS-CoV-2 to provide a non-invasive and cost-effective way to examine community spread of the virus. By giving advance warning of emerging viral hotspots up to a week earlier than traditional tests, wastewater surveillance could give public health workers valuable time to mobilize and protect communities from uncontrolled outbreaks.

Alive Church Network: Increasing COVID-19 Testing in Chicago’s African American Testing Deserts

Lead institution: Rush University Medical Center

Through a collaborative partnership of pastors and researchers, this initiative will create a network of church-based COVID-19 testing sites in Chicago's West Side neighborhoods. The project will help address health inequities in these vulnerable communities, providing easier access to SARS-CoV-2 testing and COVID-19 education from an on-site clinical team.

Characterizing the Neutralizing Antibody Response in SARS-CoV-2 Infected Individuals

Lead institution: Rush University Medical Center

This project will help us better understand how our immune system responds to SARS-CoV-2, inform vaccine development efforts, and investigate unknowns such as how long does immunity last or what is the likelihood of re-infection. The team will take an in-depth look at the antibodies our bodies make to fight the virus, determining the molecular features of antibodies that can destroy the virus vs. those that do not provide lasting protection. Their findings will also inform the use of convalescent plasma therapeutics and identify where the highest levels of coronavirus exposure are occurring in the Chicago region.

Surveying SARS-CoV-2 Genomes and Public Data in Near Real-Time for Pandemic Response in Chicago

Lead institution: Open Commons Consortium (Center for Computational Science Research Inc.)

There is currently a dearth of SARS-CoV-2 genomes available from the Chicago region. This project will considerably expand Chicagoland viral sequencing efforts and support a data-sharing infrastructure for this and other epidemiological data. Insights from this project will enhance our understanding of SARS-CoV-2 transmission and evolution, both from the early stages of the COVID-19 crisis and as the pandemic continues to unfold.

For more information about Chicago CAN, visit: www.walderfoundation.org/news/chicago-can

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