The nursing profession traditionally has included only small numbers of individuals from minority backgrounds who are prepared at the master's level or beyond. Consequently, a significant disparity exists in the number of individuals from diverse cultural backgrounds who have the academic preparation and the professional socialization to address the health care issues of growing minority populations. Project IMPART (improving minority Professionals' Access to Research Tracks) is a program designed to increase the number of minority nurses who have the scholarly expertise to progress into research careers and to integrate advanced nursing education into their career goals. Project IMPART builds on an existing, productive relationship between a public associate degree nursing program (Community College of Philadelphia) and a private baccalaureate nursing program (Thomas Jefferson University). It is a crucial step in providing a solution to the scarcity of minority nurse researchers. Specifically, students in Project IMPART earn credits applicable to the baccalaureate and master's degrees in nursing, work with research role models in academic and clinical settings, and access career development services. The expected outcomes of the Project are that minority students who are involved in this innovative program will 1) pursue baccalaureate and higher nursing degrees; 2) participate in research opportunities to increase awareness of health-related research issues; 3) become mentors for other minority students; and 4) initiate a research agenda designed to find solutions to health care problems commonly experienced by minority persons.
