Native American Youths Enjoy Science - YES Oklahoma

项目摘要 “YES俄克拉荷马州”计划提供了一条途径，可持续增强俄克拉荷马州的代表性 美国印第安学生在癌症研究。我们的计划得到了威奇托部落主席的支持 和附属部落，基奥瓦部落高等教育，科曼奇民族主席，以及 代表我们合作学校的主管我们的机构支持是巨大的，包括> 70 000美元 每年有20多名教师指导。美国原住民（NA）专业人士在STEM领域的代表性不足， 尤其是在生物医学研究中，而在癌症研究中几乎不存在。这种STEM差异 对社区健康的影响。在癌症发生率方面存在着显著的NA健康差异， 各种癌症的死亡率，其中大部分差异发生在癌症类型中， 筛查、早期发现和获得医疗保健具有很大的影响。与一般人群相比， 在过去20年中在降低癌症相关死亡率方面取得了相当大的进展， 对于NA组没有观察到这种减少。这表明，更强大的NA医疗保健 劳动力和基础设施，与他们的社区有着密切的联系，可以降低这些比率。在我们的目标中， 我们提出了一个研究培训战略，在那里NA高中学生感兴趣的生物医学事业， 从事科学研究和专业化活动，重点是癌症 research.是的，俄克拉荷马州的学者将包括一批正在崛起的高中NA大三学生和大四学生， 为期8周的专业发展和癌症研究夏季课程（目标1）;是俄克拉荷马州教师 (Aim 2）将包括一批来自伙伴学校的初中和高中教师，他们将参加一个 8-为期一周的夏季培训活动，包括研究和课程开发。教师招聘未来 是的，俄克拉荷马州的学者来自他们的课堂人口。这个班级的学生是YES俄克拉荷马州 学员，谁从事是教师的是俄克拉荷马州的课程，包括实验室研究的经验 和当地的YES俄克拉荷马州外展活动。在一起，PI，学者，教师和学员，沿着 社区利益相关者和部落，将组成我们的YES俄克拉荷马州外展队，他们将参加 这些活动侧重于家庭、社区和部落间活动以及癌症预防教育（目标3）。的 YES俄克拉荷马州计划每年将直接影响76名参与者（72名NA学生和4名教师）， 联合外展活动将间接影响数千名服务不足的学生、教师、家庭， 社区成员。最终的结果是，该计划将建立一个途径的NA学生 进入STEM项目，并最终进入生物医学科学。

PROJECT SUMMARY The “YES Oklahoma” program provides a pathway that sustains an enhanced representation of Oklahoma American Indian students in cancer research. Our program is supported by the Tribal President of the Wichita and Affiliated Tribes, the Kiowa Tribe Higher Education, and the Chairman of the Comanche Nation, as well as superintendents representing our partnering schools. Our institutional support is substantial, including >$70,000 annually and over 20 faculty mentors. Native American (NA) professionals are underrepresented in STEM fields, particularly those in biomedical research, and near-absent in cancer research. This STEM discrepancy has realized impacts on community health. There is a substantial NA health disparity in cancer occurrence and mortality rates of various cancers, and much of these disparities occur with cancer types where regular screening, early detection, and access to healthcare have a large impact. Compared to the general population, where there has been considerable advancement over the last 20 years in lowering cancer-associated mortality, such reductions have not been observed for NA groups. This suggests that a more robust NA healthcare workforce and infrastructure, one with strong ties to their communities, could reduce these rates. In our aims, we propose a research training strategy, where NA high school students interested in biomedical careers can engage in hands on scientific research and professionalization activities, with a strong emphasis in cancer research. YES Oklahoma Scholars will include a cohort of rising high school NA juniors and seniors engaged in an 8-week summer course on professional development and cancer research (Aim 1); YES Oklahoma Teachers (Aim 2) will include a cohort of middle and high school teachers from partner schools who will participate in an 8-week summer training event that includes research and curriculum development. Teachers will recruit future YES Oklahoma Scholars from their classroom populations. This classroom cohort are the YES Oklahoma Trainees, who engage is a Teacher’s YES Oklahoma curriculum that includes laboratory research experiences and local YES Oklahoma outreach activities. Together, the PIs, Scholars, Teachers, and Trainees, along with community stakeholders and tribes, will form our YES Oklahoma Outreach Team, and they will participate in events focused on families, communities, and intertribal activities and cancer prevention education (Aim 3). The YES Oklahoma program will directly impact over 76 participants (72 NA students and 4 teachers) annually, and the combined outreach events will indirectly impact thousands of underserved students, teachers, families and community members. The net result is that the program would have established a pathway of NA students entering the STEM program and ultimately into biomedical sciences.