SF BUILD: Enabling full representation in science

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Systemic barriers to engaging historically underrepresented (HU) students not only limit innovation and productivity in biomedical research, they perpetuate social inequities. To overcome these barriers to effective, equitable biomedical research that benefits all populations, the overall goal of the SF BUILD II project is to sustain promising climate transformation efforts and disseminate those found to be effective. Toward this end, promising efforts from SF BUILD I will be maintained and tested at both the primary institution, San Francisco State University (SF State), and its research partner, the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF). SF BUILD’s key innovation is its focus on changing institutions rather than individual students, to make the path to a research career more inviting. In SF BUILD I, an approach guided by the Signaling Affirmation for Equity (SAFE) model achieved progress in creating affirming and inclusive teaching and research environments. SAFE is grounded in social science theory and evidence of triggers that cause HU students to exit science, as well as social contextual cues that mitigate triggers, to improve student retention and success. Quantitative data from SF BUILD I show that growing a SAFE environment mitigates stereotype threat, promotes science efficacy, and increases science identity. As a result, participating HU students report a greater intent to pursue biomedical research careers. In SF BUILD II, inclusive and effective approaches to teaching and research training will be sustained and disseminated, and students’ meaningful engagement in the biomedical research workforce will continue to be affirmed. Systemic affirmation will take place through counter-stereotyping and microaffirmation activities in the classroom, and by engaging HU students in peer mentoring and research activities that “give back” to the communities from which they come. In addition, data on longer-term outcomes, such as graduate school matriculation and retention, will be gathered and evaluated. The SF BUILD approach capitalizes on the institutional history and mission of SF State, a predominantly undergraduate institution that has attained national prominence for preparing HU students for biomedical research careers. SF BUILD II aims to leverage SF State’s record of success to create agents of change who will build the capacity for biomedical research that benefits all populations. This goal is also a critical focus of UCSF, which—through its School of Medicine’s Differences Matter Initiative, established during SF BUILD I—aims to become the most diverse, equitable, and inclusive academic medical system in the country. The proposed work is significant because, working together, SF State and UCSF expect SF BUILD II to result in a national, large-scale model for creating collaborative, affirming, and inclusive teaching and research environments for HU undergraduates. In this way, HU students across the country will be able to successfully transition to premiere research universities and become the agents of change essential for a new, more inclusive approach to biomedical research.