Winston-Salem State University Research Initiative for Scientific Enhancement

 描述（由申请人提供）：温斯顿-塞勒姆州立大学（WSSU）提出了一个MBRS RISE实施一个4阶段计划，目标是代表性不足（UR）的学生在生物医学/行为科学的职业曝光，学术提升，研究培训和专业发展。该计划旨在最大限度地发挥机构的影响，所有进入RISE相关学科的学生（新生和转学生）都将被邀请参加。此后，培训，发展和持续的自我和程序选择的方案将增加WSSU学生在上升相关部门（89% UR）谁是专业内保留的数量，追求科学研究生学位，并获得直接进入博士课程录取。这个应用程序的重点是学习社区的发展，促进学术指导和研究培训的本科生1）介绍UR的在大一和大二（低年级）水平的生物医学或行为研究，同时发展一个支持性的同龄人社区，重视学术卓越和专业发展; 2）培养合格和积极的初级/高级（高年级）本科生的独立研究经验。我们计划的这一要素将进一步发展这些学生进入生物医学/行为科学广泛学科的竞争性博士课程所需的专业技能。一个特别的重点将放在我们与研究密集型大学的关系与各种博士前T32计划顺利过渡到研究生课程。该培训计划有超过20个校外资助的培训教师导师，在两个机构（维克森林大学健康科学[WFUHS]和WSSU）内的十个不同的部门，中心和计划中具有主要的学术任命，并将吸引来自三个部门（生命科学，化学和行为科学）的受训人员在WSSU艺术与科学学院。我们的目标是：1）与本科新生班建立一个支持性的学习社区，以促进学术成功，职业探索和专业发展; 2）通过注册一个密集的选修实验室研究方法课程，为自选的二年级学生提供研究技能的正式培训; 3）吸引一批经过竞争挑选的大三学生（RISE Fellows）作为一个学习社区，通过参与有偿指导的研究活动，提供接触研究教师在这两个本课程的主要内容包括：（1）提供基础科学和临床研究的课程，并通过体验临床相关研究的刺激和挑战;及（2）提供与生物和行为研究技术相关的调查和研究课程，以加强本科高年级参与者的批判性思维技能，从而增强对基础科学研究和研究生教育的理解。该计划将受益于WSSU和WFUHS的几个既定调查人员的持续合作，其中大多数人聚集在皮埃蒙特三合会研究园校园的一个共享的基础科学大楼。设施，教师和其他资源的组合为对生物医学/行为科学感兴趣的本科生提供了丰富而充满活力的跨学科培训环境。该计划将由一个由内部和外部成员组成的咨询委员会指导，并由独立的计划评估员进行形成性和总结性评估，以确定该计划对选择获得博士学位的学生的具体影响。我们相信我们有能力实现这一成果，并预计该计划的活动将作为WSSU生物医学或行为科学学科其他学生的典范。

 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.