Winston-Salem State University Research Initiative for Scientific Enhancement

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 DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Winston-Salem State University (WSSU) proposes an MBRS RISE to implement a 4-stage program that targets underrepresented (UR) students for career exposure, academic enhancement, research training and professional development in biomedical/behavioral sciences. This program is designed for maximal institutional impact in which all entering students (freshmen and transfer) in the RISE relevant disciplines will be invited to participate. Thereafter, a regimen of training, development and ongoing self and program selection will increase the number of WSSU students in the RISE relevant departments (89% UR) who are retained within majors, pursue graduate degrees in sciences, and gain admission directly into PhD programs. This application focuses on the development of learning communities that facilitate academic mentoring and research training of undergraduates by 1) introducing UR's at the freshman and sophomore (lower classmen) levels to biomedical or behavioral research, while developing a supportive peer community that values academic excellence and professional development; 2) fostering independent research experiences for qualified and motivated junior/senior (upper classman) undergraduates. This element of our program will further develop the professional skills necessary for these students to enter competitive PhD programs in the broad disciplines of biomedical/behavioral science. A particular emphasis will be placed on our relationships with research-intensive universities with various pre-doctoral T32 programs for a smooth transition into graduate programs. The training program has over 20 extramurally-funded training faculty mentors with primary academic appointments in ten different Departments, Centers and Programs within two institutions (Wake Forest University Health Sciences [WFUHS] and WSSU) and will draw trainees from three departments (life sciences, chemistry, and behavioral sciences) in the College of Arts and Sciences at WSSU. We aim to 1) build a supportive learning community with the undergraduate freshman class to foster academic success, career exploration and professional development; 2) facilitate formal training in research skills for a self-selected sophomore cohort through registration for an intense elective laboratory research methods course; 3) engage a competitively selected cohort of juniors (RISE Fellows) to function as a Learning Community through their participation in paid mentored research activities by providing exposure to research faculty in both basic science and clinical and through an experience that exemplifies the excitement and challenges of clinically relevant investigations; and 4) strengthen undergraduate senior participants' critical thinking skills by providing an Investigation and Research course associated with biological and behavioral research techniques to enhance the understanding of basic science research and graduate education. This program will benefit from the ongoing collaboration of several established investigators at WSSU and WFUHS, the majority of whom have assembled in a shared basic science building in the Piedmont Triad Research Park campus. The combination of facilities, faculty, and other resources provides a rich and vibrant interdisciplinary training environment for undergraduate students who are interested in biomedical/behavioral sciences. The program will be guided by an advisory committee consisting of both internal and external members and reviewed by an independent program evaluator for a formative and summative evaluation and to determine the specific impact of this program on students choosing to obtain a PhD. We are confident in our ability to achieve this outcome and anticipate that this program's activities will serve as a model for other students in biomedical or behavioral science disciplines at WSSU.