PRAIRIE VIEW, Texas (May 9, 2022) Having a diverse pipeline of well-trained STEM students ready to enter Ph.D. programs and ultimately the STEM workforce just got easier, thanks to a $1,712,952 National Institutes of Health/National Institute of General Medical Sciences (NIH/NIGMS) funding award. While the solution is not simple, Principal Investigator, Gloria Regisford, Ph.D., believes that the Undergraduate Research Training Initiative for Student Enhancement (U-RISE) at PVAMU funding will address future needs and challenges in the biomedical sciences.
Gloria Regisford, Ph.D.
Regisford has an overarching goal of promoting equity in science and health spaces as a professor in the Department of Biology and Director of the “Cultivating Undergraduates for STEM Ph.D.’s (CUSP) initiative. With this grant, Regisford and her team will train and prepare a diverse pool of students for matriculation into a biomedical research Ph.D. program and, eventually, biomedical research careers.
“We aim to increase the number of underrepresented biomedical research scientists, to have a more diverse biomedical research workforce, and optimistically take a step towards achieving equity in science and health spaces,” said Regisford.
With a passion for mentoring and training students in research, Regisford assembled a multidisciplinary team to implement the five-year training grant.
“Upon receiving the notice of the grant award, I was simply thrilled with the good news. I am so proud of our multidisciplinary team’s accomplishment and feel truly inspired by the hope of PVAMU producing more productive people who ultimately become biomedical research scientists,” said Regisford.
Noushin Ghaffari, Ph.D.
Noushin Ghaffari, Ph.D., assistant professor of computer science in the Roy G. Perry College of Engineering, is one of the Co-PIs on the project. Ghaffari is looking forward to recruiting and training the next generation of diverse biomedical researchers. Multidisciplinary research is an essential aspect of her research interests and background.
“Students will get involved in cutting-edge research in areas such as bioinformatics and pave the way for their success in biomedical research. It is a great avenue for students who would like to pursue a career in research, join a Ph.D. program and pursue a career in research,” said Ghaffari.
Co-PI Laura Carson, Ph.D., serves as a research scientist and director for undergraduate research and research compliance in the College of Agriculture and Human Sciences. Carson sees this as an excellent opportunity to work with an interdisciplinary team to engage students interested in biomedical research and have an interest in furthering their academic endeavors.
Laura Carson, Ph.D.
Carson stated, “I am looking forward to engaging with the students and helping them navigate their way to a Ph.D. program in the biomedical sciences. I am also looking forward to seeing the students gain an interest in performing biomedical research and watching their confidence levels explode during their ‘ah-ha’ moments. It is such a joy to watch their eyes gleam with excitement.”
The U-RISE at PVAMU program will reach a large population of racial and ethnic underrepresented (UR) students with disadvantaged socio-economic backgrounds and first-generation college students. With leadership from the Vice President for Research & Innovation, the university promotes undergraduate engagement in research and is in full support of this newly funded program.
“Students will be involved in a robust mentoring program that supports and motivates them to succeed. They will also receive financial support to remove the need to work off-campus or obtain student loans. In addition, students will have opportunities to engage in biomedical research with some of our brilliant research scientists and participate in an enriched academic curriculum that highlights the research process,” explained Regisford.
PVAMU’s status as a Carnegie Research 2 university and its established collaborations with surrounding research-intensive universities provide a robust learning environment that strongly supports the U-RISE at PVAMU program.
“For the National Institutes of Health to select Prairie View A&M University and award the major U-RISE sponsored project signifies our continued growth in research prominence. Our cross-disciplinary faculty are committed to nurturing and developing today’s young scholars into tomorrow’s research-focused experts who will go on to earn higher degrees in the STEM disciplines,” said PVAMU Vice President of Research & Innovation Magesh Rajan, Ph.D., P.E., MBA. “Dr. Regisford’s team–which includes subject-matter experts from the Colleges of Agriculture and Human Sciences, Arts and Science, and Engineering–are dedicated to involving and training PVAMU students in their respective disciplines. So, this grant empowers them to expand their efforts and impact a greater number of students to become future researchers, and address the gaps in national workforce demands.”
Ananda Amarasekara, Ph.D.
Co-PI Ananda Amarasekara, Ph.D., professor and interim head for the chemistry and physics department is intrigued by the biomedical science-related collaborative research projects that may start as a result of the funding.
“Research publications and presentations resulting from this grant will help keep the R2 status,” stated Amarasekara.
Although student enrollment in biomedical science disciplines such as biology and chemistry is relatively high, less than 10% of students declare an interest in graduate school. This conundrum may be due to a lack of exposure and preparation for the rigors of graduate school. The U-RISE at PVAMU program will address that concern by enhancing student participation and preparation in the biomedical sciences to better prepare them for highly competitive Ph.D. programs and, ultimately, a biomedical science research career.
Regisford stated, “U-RISE will enhance the research culture at PVAMU by having more of our students engaged in research activities with our resident research scientists”
The U-RISE at PVAMU program will recruit four (4) students each year over a period of 5 years. To participate in the program, sophomore students must be a member of a racial and ethnic U.R. population with a declared major in a biomedical science discipline (biology, chemistry, computer science, mathematics, animal science, nutrition, chemical or electrical engineering). They must also desire to pursue a doctoral degree in the biomedical sciences. The U-RISE at PVAMU trainees will experience hands-on research with an enriched interdisciplinary research culture for three years. A team of faculty, research professors/scientists, and external collaborators will create a nurturing and stimulating culture of support.
“I am excited about every aspect of our proposed U-RISE at PVAMU program. I look forward to working closely with everyone, especially the students, research mentors, and my multidisciplinary management team,” said Regisford.
Karen B. Cotton, MS, MA