The North Carolina Community College System (NCCCS) and The University of North Carolina - Office of the President (UNC-OP) seek continued support for the implementation of a program to increase the number of underrepresented community college students who, through college transfer, participate in education leading to a baccalaureate degree in the biomedical sciences. African Americans, Hispanic Americans, Native Americans and Pacific Islanders, for example, represent approximately 30% of the state's population and have been significantly underrepresented in biomedical science fields in North Carolina and the nation. Each academic year, the North Carolina Transfer Assistance in the Biomedical Sciences (NC TABS) program provides educational and research experiences, mentoring and financial support for up to 25 students from these underrepresented groups. The primary goal of NC TABS is to increase the number of community college students transferring to baccalaureate degree granting institutions and pursuing majors in ? the biomedical or biomedically-related sciences by 5% per year. Four groups of measurable objectives will promote achievement of that goal: (1) Student Academic Milestones - to increase the retention, graduation rate and transfer rate; (2) Faculty Development - to improve science teaching and mentoring; (3) Building Institutional Capacity - to offer more opportunities for student research experiences at the baccalaureate institutions; involve more faculty at the universities as mentors, and to develop more institutional support for the program; (4) Program Management - to achieve consistent and flexible operation of the program, to maintain accurate and accessible records and develop linkages with relevant databases to attract additional funding sources and to implement and expand a system of evaluation and efficacy measures. ? ?
