The FlyBase Diversity Action Plan is a novel collaboration between the FlyBase Drosophila genomics database program, centered at Harvard University; and the University of New Mexico (UNM), one of only two Research Extensive Universities in the country that is also a majority-minority institution, and the only suh institution with a high Hispanic/relatively high Native American student enrollment. Training activities at UNM will include an annual class, five positions for post baccalaureate scholars, and a biennial Genomics Workshop in years one and three The class, Frontiers in Genomics, is offered to UNM undergraduates, post baccalaureate fellows, and graduate students and is taught by Dr William Gelbart, PI of the FlyBase program. It features renowned guest speakers invited from genome centers around the country and extended office hours for student visits. FlyBase Post baccalaureate Scholars (five each year) will be recruited at UNM and regionally to carry out research full-time in laboratories at UNM using genomic approaches. These Scholars will also be trained in bioinformatic approaches to biology, will spend one summer at an NHGRI- funded Genome Center, and will apply to graduate programs to continue their research careers. Scholars will also spend a week in Boston, visiting FlyBase and nearby research centers. Broader institutional impact will be achieved through the class and by hosting a biennial Genomics Workshop at UNM, featuring invited guests who will interact extensively with our student and post baccalaureate populations. These activities will continue the positive trajectory that we have initiated in diversifying the professoriate, and will serve as a model for how institutional collaborations can enhance student training.
of this project to human health is through providing Genomics education to a diverse group of students, including Hispanics and Native Americans, the direct training of individuals in biomedical science fields, and the subsequent strong performance of these individuals in PhD programs. Since several of our Scholars hail from populations that experience specific health disparities, we will be training individuals who are highly motivated, educated, and in a position to carry out future research aimed at alleviating and curing these health disparities.
