A Basic four neighboring community colleges (CC): Chabot College (in Hayward), College of San Mateo, Laney College (in Oakland), and Ohlone College (in Fremont). The objective of the Consortium is to enrich the academic and research experience of five students per CC per year, for a total of 20 students per year. Through appointed CC faculty coordinators, students are selected from targeted ethnicities underrepresented in vocations related to basic biomedical research as specified in the NIH RFA. While enrolled at the CC, students will participate in a two-year program of enrichment opportunities, are paid a salary for performing research, and are given assistance in the transfer process to a baccalaureate institution. This two-year program includes, but is not limited to, the following elements. Years 1,2 (all 20 students), at the CC's Academic Year: Selection/verification of new (Y1) and continuing (Y2) student cohorts; advising and tutoring; participation in worldwide-web-based activities relative to improvement in coursework, and use of the web for identifying education, research and scholarship opportunities. At CSUH, Academic Year: Attendance at seminars and afternoon colloquia with Bay Area research scientists; alliance with student participants in MBRS sponsored research for mentoring and research experience in MBRS laboratories. Year 1 (12 Y1 students, 3 per CC) at CSUH, Summer: Four weeks of group laboratory research activity focusing on basic molecular laboratory procedures and maintenance of the laboratory notebook, gene cloning experiments, DNA sequencing and sequence analysis, protein and immunology techniques, and cell culture techniques. This is followed by four weeks of intermediate level research in which students clone and characterize the homologous gene from Drosophila, mice, and primates using PCR-based strategies, thus advancing the molecular research talents acquired in the introductory weeks. Year 2 (8 Y2 students, 2 per CC) coordinated through CSUH, Summer: Individual placement for a 12 week research internship with a sponsoring research scientist in a Bay Area biotechnology company. The Consortium will provide an educational consultant to monitor the progress of, and assist in the mentoring of, each intern. Measurable goals of high priority include (1) increasing the Y 1 pool of students from the present two to three at each CC, and (2) increasing the rate of program participant transfer to CSUH by an average of 5 percent per year. The Consortium has built-in mechanisms for tracking of student progress, for both formative and summative program evaluation, and for interlinkage with other science-education and research-based programs in the Bay Area.
| Simms, Ellen L; Taylor, D Lee; Povich, Joshua et al. (2006) An empirical test of partner choice mechanisms in a wild legume-rhizobium interaction. Proc Biol Sci 273:77-81 |
