MUSC High School Teen Science Ambassador Program

摘要 增加代表不足的少数群体(URM)在生物医学劳动力中的参与对于确保 科学多样性和满足对STEM毕业生日益增长的需求。中的URM表示不充分 从历史上看，STEM一直受到缺乏专业资源和教育机会的推动， 导致在STEM学位领域中URM的保留率较低。有理论基础、有指导的研究 经验已被证明可以解决这些障碍，并提高STEM领域的URM持久性。 然而，很少有结构化的、全面评估的课程存在，而且大多数集中在本科生和 毕业后的学生，而不是关键的高中基础阶段。因此，主要的 建议的导师研究计划的目标，名为MUSC高中青少年科学大使 该计划旨在为高中学生提供早期临床研究经验和专业发展 具有增加多样性和帮助满足日益增长的生物医学需求的长期目标的学生 劳动力。该项目将得到南加州大学青年合作组织的支持，该组织由教职员工和 学员专注于青少年物质使用和心理健康研究，这将提供丰富的培训 为真实世界的研究体验奠定了基础。拟议的计划与NIH的使命是一致的，以支持 教育活动是对劳动力培训的补充和加强，以满足国家的生物医学、 PAR-20-153中概述的行为和临床研究需求。青少年科学的具体目标 大使计划将：提供技能发展和实践研究经验的课程，如 以及为对STEM职业感兴趣的青年提供指导和职业发展培训。这将是 通过三个重点阶段完成：(1)为期16周的临床研究指导教学培训 技能和专业发展，包括完成文献回顾、口头报告和公开演讲 服务公告；(2)近乎同行的导师培训和经验，以及在NIH的实习- 资助的实验室专注于青少年药物使用研究；以及(3)继续与同行、教职员工、 以及获得长期事业成功的校友。来自社区利益攸关方和咨询委员会的意见将 收集并评估和改进计划目标和结果，并制作所有计划材料 可在其他机构公开传播和实施。高素质的， 多学科教师指导团队，与社区学校和领导人建立伙伴关系，并严格 来自独立评估者的计划评估将确保拟议的计划符合规定 目的增加生物医学人才队伍的多样性。

ABSTRACT Increasing underrepresented minority (URM) participation in the biomedical workforce is essential to ensuring scientific diversity and meeting the growing demand for STEM graduates. Inadequate URM representation in STEM has historically been fueled by lack of access to professional resources and educational opportunities, leading to low rates of retention of URMs in STEM degree fields. Theoretically-grounded, mentored research experiences have been shown to address these barriers and increase URM persistence in STEM fields. However, few structured, comprehensively evaluated programs exist and most focus on undergraduate and post-baccalaureate students, as opposed to the critical foundational period of high school. Thus, the primary objective of the proposed mentored research program, titled MUSC High School Teen Science Ambassador Program, is to provide early clinical research experiences and professional development to high school students with the long-term goal of increasing diversity and helping meet the growing need in the biomedical workforce. The program will be supported by MUSC’s Youth Collaborative, which is comprised of faculty and trainees focused on adolescent substance use and mental health research, which will provide a rich training ground for real-world research experiences. The proposed program is aligned with NIH’s mission to support educational activities that complement and enhance the training of a workforce to meet the nation’s biomedical, behavioral, and clinical research needs as outlined in PAR-20-153. The specific aims of the Teen Science Ambassador Program are to: provide courses for skills development and hands-on research experiences, as well as mentoring and professional development training to youth interested in STEM careers. This will be accomplished through three focused phases: (1) a 16-week, mentored didactic training on clinical research skills and professional development, including completion of a literature review, oral presentation, and public service announcement; (2) near-peer mentorship training and experience, as well as an internship in an NIH- funded lab focused on adolescent substance use research; and (3) continued networking with peers, faculty, and alumni for long-term career success. Input from community stakeholders and an Advisory Committee will be collected to assess and improve program goals and outcomes, and all program materials will be made publicly available for dissemination and implementation at other institutions. The highly-qualified, multidisciplinary faculty mentorship team, partnerships with community schools and leaders, and rigorous program evaluation from independent evaluators will ensure that the proposed program meets the stated objective to increase diversity in the biomedical workforce.