This proposal is a request for renewal of a summer REU program held at the Wadsworth Center of the New York State Department of Health in Albany, NY. The research scientists who supervise the students in this program are also faculty in the Department of Biomedical Sciences of the State University of New York at Albany's School of Public Health. The Wadsworth Center is a unique scientific institution with state-of-the-art facilities, in which basic research programs have developed alongside mission-oriented public health laboratories. The research interests of the participating BMS faculty cover a broad range, with emphasis in molecular genetics, cell biology and structural biology. Ten undergraduate students interested in research careers are recruited from institutions with limited research opportunities for undergraduates, including small colleges in the Northwest and historically black colleges in the south. Another 4-6 students participate in the program with stipend support from the Wadsworth Center. Laboratory projects in basic biological research topics are chosen that are interesting, likely to yeild results within the time- frame of the program, and allow for some degree of student development and independence. Weekly group meetings are used to discuss science- and career-related issues (including the proper conduct of science) and to monitor student progress. The students give short oral presentations of their work in a symposium in the last week of the program, and also submit written reports before they leave, to stress the importance of communication skills within science.
