Although the health of Americans is improving, disparities of health remain. Differences in health status are well documented across racial groups, and for a variety of diseases. For example, i n 2013, Black Americans continued to experience higher age-adjusted death rates than Whites and had double the rates of death due to common preventable conditions: hypertension, suicide, and pneumonia and influenza. Diversity in scientific research benefits the workforce and society at large. Yet, researchers are more likely to be White, potentially causing discomfort and reluctance among non-White individuals to join research studies. Members of minority groups together constitute more than 30% of the U.S. population, however they represent less than 18% of clinical trial participants. In addition, in 2015, only 1.6% of all NIH Senior Investigators (tenured) were Black, Non-Hispanic, and just 3.2% were Hispanic. Biomedical scientists typically develop their career interests in high school, but many high school students, particularly in low-income communities, do not have equal access to the rigorous academic preparation required for entry into the biomedical research field. This project aims to bridge the gap for high school students of color, with a particular focus on Black and Hispanics, in the Greater Boston Area to provide opportunities to receive vigorous academic and experiential stimulation over two years Program Title: LEAH - Knox Scholars in Biomedical Research program Goal: Attract and retain up to 230 (46 per year X 5) minority high school-aged sophomores, juniors and seniors from the Greater Boston Area, over five years, into the field of biomedical science and research through a two-year, didactic and experiential program combining a youth development approach, didactic learning, laboratory work experiences, and mentorship opportunities.
Specific Aims : (1) Engage participants in the world of biomedicine through exposure to interesting activities, research, and professions in various biomedicine disciplines; (2) Retain their engagement in science through a work-study opportunity in a professional MIT laboratory; (3) Sustain participants' interest in science/biomedicine through mentorships with a professional scientist; (4) Provide peer-tutoring skills, workforce development, and college readiness training to all participants. The primary anticipated outcome of this program is to create, implement, and disseminate a new model to attract, retain and support minority students into the field of science will be developed, implemented and ready for dissemination in other urban areas, which will, in time, increase the diversity of professional research scientists in the United States. This program will incorporate the Next Generation Science Standards into the summer lab program curriculum, addressing Goals 2 and 4.
NIH funds relatively few US Black and Hispanic biomedical researchers; the disparity in the workforce pipeline begins prior to college entry. This project will address this workforce issue by attracting and supporting a diverse group of top science students from Boston and Cambridge Massachusetts high schools with large Black and/or Hispanic enrollment; they will be engaged, supported and encouraged to grow their interest in science through a two-year, multi-industry partnership that provides a high-level experiential learning opportunities in the life sciences. By leveraging resources and connections with academic labs and biotech businesses throughout the Greater Boston area, the program will provide 16 students per year with a high-level summer lab experience at MIT and up to 30 students per year with opportunities to learn about science, share their learning with their peers in local public elementary schools, and meet and learn from top scientists and graduate students in the community.
