The long-term objectives of this proposal are to increase the representation of disadvantaged students in the sciences, particularly in the biomedical sciences. The applicant organization, The Lovelace Institutes (formerly Lovelace Medical Foundation) has a long-standing commitment to education at all levels, from elementary to postgraduate studies. All of the students for whom records are available have attended college and many of the students in the earliest years of the program are now in medical school. The students, furthermore, are attending highly prestigious institutions, including Yale, Brown, Occidental College, Rice, Bryn Mawr, Stanford, and Washington University. The student interns have contributed substantially to the on-going research projects of their mentors, with many being listed as co-authors or recognized for their contributions in acknowledgements on scientific communications, or attending conferences with their mentors. The relationship between the students and their mentors is clearly mutually beneficial. The proposed continuation of this program through the NCRR K-12 Teachers and High School Students, will be expanded in several important ways from the previous program. First, the mentors will now include those from the Inhalation Toxicology Research Institute, allowing the program to increase in size. Second, there will be substantially increased activities outside the laboratory experience, including presentations by the TLI staff on aspects of biomedical research of importance to future scientists and physicians. Third, the teacher interns will have additional opportunities to interact with each other, with scientists besides their mentor (with additional areas of expertise that may be tapped to provide hands-on explorations to supplement the existing curriculum). The existing strengths of the program, the one-on- one student to mentor relationship, the focus on laboratory experiences and the end-of-summer symposium, will be continued. The program is expected to continue to inspire and motivate these talented young people.
