HAUMANA BIOMEDICAL PROGRAM

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The Haumana (Hawaiian word for 'Student') Biomedical Program at the University of Hawaii at Manoa (UHM) is supported by a grant from the Minority Biomedical Research Support (MBRS) Program of the Division of Research Resources. The major goal of the MBRS program at UHM is to provide a major research experience in the biomedical and health sciences for undergraduate minority students. Students of the following ethnic identities are under represented tn Hawaii's health professions: Hawaiian or Part-Hawaiian, Filipino, Samoan and American Pacific Islander. In the State, these groups form a significant combined total of 33.6% of the population, but are severely under represented at UHM totalling only 13.8% of the student population. The program's approach is multidisciplinary, involving 22 faculty and 12 fields of study in the health sciences. Thirteen undergraduate research participants will be actively recruited and selected each year during the second semester of their sophomore year and will enter the two-year laboratory-based research program as classified juniors. Students will have an opportunity to choose from a wide variety of scientific research, much of which is already supported from extramural sources. Through the research lab experience and career guidance the program seeks to motivate a greater number of ethnic minorities to pursue careers in this field. Another key factor in this process is the opportunity the program provides for the student to attend and or present scientific results at a mainland conference and to produce work for publication. For the next grant cycle we propose to offer two specialty courses during the second year, a course on the issues and skills for success in a biomedical career and a course on science communication skills. The total program has played a significant role in encouraging at least 50% of our MBRS graduates to continue in professional health studies and biomedical support careers. In the previous budget period, our program was successful in obtaining University Funds for those MBRS students who exhausted their MBRS salary allotments prior to the end of the program year. Other innovations include a linkage to the MBRS program at the University of Hawaii at Hilo through two graduate positions, University funds to make the student salaries competitive, the possibility of obtaining tuition waivers for MBRS undergraduates and the addition of new MBRS faculty.