Oklahoma State University (OSU) has experienced a rapid growth in minority student enrollment, particularly in the biological sciences at the undergraduate level over the past five years. Minority enrollment in the biological sciences has increased nearly three- fold, with much of the growth from the Native American population of the State. This achievement in the biological sciences has been the result of aggressive recruiting and enrichment programs, many of which are funded by extramural programs such as the NSF and the Howard Hughes Medical Institute. All of these programs provide scholarships for minority students in the biological sciences and opportunities for undergraduate research. As a result of these programs, we have a significant pool of minority undergraduate students approaching graduation and considering future careers in the biomedical sciences. We wish to take advantage of that situation and to provide graduate opportunities for minorities in active research laboratories at OSU. We propose to form a close """"""""federation"""""""" of twenty active biomedical-related research faculty in nine separate departments and three colleges within OSU to provide graduate research for minority students. We also propose to seek minority graduates for post-doctoral training within this federation of investigators. Recent summer research opportunities offered for veterinary students at OSU suggest that minority students in veterinary school may also consider research careers and we propose to provide opportunities for those individuals as well. We are requesting support for graduate student stipends and tuition for this program. We also are requesting funding to support research supplies and travel for the students to attend national meetings in their fields. We also have an opportunity to develop stronger interactions with Langston University, a small, predominantly Black institution located 15 miles from the OSU campus. We propose a number of enrichment programs with Langston University to better prepare their graduates for graduate education in the biomedical sciences. The ultimate goal of both aspects of this proposal is to increase significantly the number of minority students enrolled in and graduating with doctoral degrees in the biomedical sciences at OSU.
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