Mississippi has the twin distinctions of being both the poorest and most disease-prone state in the nation. The state has the lowest per capita income and the highest death rate from cardiovascular disease, the leading cause of death across the state. More Mississippians die each year from cardiovascular disease than from traffic injuries, cancer, suicides and AIDS combined. African Americans living in Mississippi face a significantly increased risk of dying prematurely, of developing major chronic diseases and of experiencing poorer health care compared to any other racial or ethnic group in the state. Jackson State University, a historically black university, is committed to addressing and, ultimately, eliminating racial-ethnic inequalities in health and health care in Mississippi. JSU is forming partnership with Jackson Public Schools to implement the Early College High School (ECHS) at Bailey Magnet High School, an innovative five-year educational program which will develop a cadre of students who are informed of the major health care disparities, equipped to effect change in their communities and focused on professional careers in biomedical sciences. An inquiry-based multi-media program, Biomedical Faces of Science, will be developed. A strong teacher professional development component will be implemented. A unique service-learning program will be developed and scholarly summer research experiences will be offered to select students to ensure the success of this program. At the end of the five-year project, the BFS program will be licensed to a private sector company to further market it to the state and the rest of the nation, thus, ensuring that the program is broadly disseminated, further closing the gap in health care disparities - and lack of involvement in biomedical science - among minorities.
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