: The University of Southern Colorado Bridges to the Baccalaureate Degree project (USC Puente Project) proposes to improve the retention and graduation rates among underrepresented minority students in southeastern Colorado, and to increase matriculation and graduation rates of minority students pursuing careers in the sciences at the region's community colleges and its comprehensive university in Pueblo. This renewal proposal is a partnership project to continue established links between two-year colleges in southern Colorado and USC's baccalaureate degree program (7/03-9/06). This """"""""pipeline"""""""" project will (a) identify and recruit 16 students in each of three years of the funding period; (b) provide support and training in research methods for faculty from two-year institutions, who will in turn prepare Bridge students for the summer program's workshops; (c) introduce Bridge students to different scientific methods during a five-week long summer training program that includes workshops and lectures presented by various university and two-year college faculty; (d) help align curriculum among the participating institutions in math, chemistry and biology through the collaboration established between university and community college faculty; and (e) give the Bridge students the opportunity to apply skills in research labs at USC and to participate in conferences !and visit research labs at the University of Colorado Health Science Center each summer. These activities will establish a regional, inter-institutional collaborative approach to the challenge of ensuring the success of Hispanic/minority students. It will particularly aid those who choose to transfer from regional community colleges to the university in programs that lead to biomedical research careers. The participating two-year partners are Pueblo Community College, Trinidad State Junior College, and Pikes Peak Community College, the first two of which are Hispanic Serving Institutions (HSIs). The four-year partner is the University of Southern Colorado (soon to be Colorado State University Pueblo), an HSI and a HACU associate. The Progress Report section describes how the project objectives of the initial project were accomplished, and highlights the encouraging impact of the first phase of the project.
