The proposed program is intended to provide Westchester, New York high school students, who are contemplating a career in the biomedical sciences, with an opportunity to participate in biomedical or behavioral research, as a means of exploring the various occupations possible within these sciences. It is also intended to provide elementary and high school science teachers of the Westchester area with an opportunity to experience active research, which can serve as a foundation for understanding basic medical and/or public health problems. This understanding will improve the quality of pre-college science education by facilitating more focused classroom discussions and development of meaningful science laboratory projects in schools.
The aim i s to stimulate and encourage disadvantaged students, under-represented in the sciences, to consider careers in biomedical and behavioral research. During the summer, ten students will be assigned for eight weeks and two teachers will be assigned for six weeks to a laboratory of a faculty member at NYMC who is conducting active biomedical or behavioral research. Based on the goals and interests of the participating laboratories, the mentors of these laboratories will be responsible for teachers and students learning the scientific background leading to the questions addressed in the laboratory, the hypotheses, significance and relevance of the research to medical or public health issues. Additionally, the group will attend one-hour lecture sessions for each of the eight weeks of the program. The goal of these sessions is to expose the teachers and students to the important support services and skills that are necessary for a successful research program. The research faculty participating in the program as preceptors will be encouraged to continue mentoring activities during the succeeding year(s); developing and expanding relationships begun during the summer. These ongoing relationships are intended to support this program's efforts to create science career opportunities for disadvantaged students.
