Short-Term Research Education Program to Increase Diversity in Health-Related Research (STREPID)

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Summary The goal of the Baylor College of Medicine Short-Term Research Education Program to Enhance Diversity in Health-Related Research (BCM STREPED) is to mentor undergraduate students underrepresented in science and medicine (UR) in research-intensive biomedical training in mission areas of the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI). The BCM Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences is supportive and proud of all the accomplishments of the BCM STREPED alumni since the initial NHLBI funding by a T35 (Pl, Dr. Gayle Slaughter) in 1995 and in 2011 by this R25 (PD, Gayle Slaughter, and Co-I, Aladin Boriek). These NHLBl-funded programs have trained 199 undergraduates, with 86 percent of the alumni still involved in academia or careers in NHLBI mission-related fields. They are contributing to the diversity of the US biomedical workforce to decrease morbidity, mortality, and improving the health of the diverse US population. This BCM STREPED R25 grant renewal proposes to recruit, mentor, and train 60 (12/year) UR undergraduates, chosen from a nationwide pool of more than 500 applicants annually, who will spend 9-weeks in the BCM Summer Undergraduate Research Training (SMART) program performing NHLBI mission area research. The curriculum and training include mentored, original NHLBl-mission research, attendance at daily research seminars led by diverse faculty, development of science writing and oral presentation skills, evaluation of the scientific and medical literature, developing critical thinking and evaluation, receiving responsible conduct of research training, and the principles of scientific rigor and reproducibility. BCM STREPED trainees will build knowledge and questions in foundational science and clinical and translational research in the NHLBl-mission areas. Other activities include mentorship and training in communication skills, fostering confidence and independence, learning about Ph.D., MD, MD/Ph.D., and health professional programs, participation at a BCM School Night to interact with medical, health professions, and graduate schools' leadership and students, discussions with UR physicians/scientists, and volunteering at Baylor-affiliated hospitals. Students will receive personalized career counseling and how to serve as role models for UR colleagues and help educate the broader communities about NHLBI biomedical research and health care developments. The impact of the BCM STREPED program activities to enhance the UR trainee's knowledge, skills, innovative research, and alumni outcomes will be assessed by formative and summative surveys.