PRAIRIE VIEW, TEXAS (April 18, 2022) Trinity Brigham plans to complete medical school after earning a degree in chemistry.   The junior is focused on the biomedical concentration and has minors in biology, Spanish, and health.  Brigham is a participant in the Prairie View A&M University (PVAMU) Division of Research & Innovation for Scholarly Excellence (RISE) Faculty RISE – Undergraduate Research Grant Program.   

The RISE program supports faculty-mentored graduate students’ research and innovation activities. It enables faculty researchers to expand and sustain their research through external grants and contracts while mentoring undergraduate students to become the next generation of experts.  

Brigham has an interest in women’s health and oncology. Her mentor, Victoria Mgbemena, assistant professor of biology in the Brailsford College of Arts and Sciences, offered the perfect opportunity to meld the two areas of interest through her research on cervical cancer.    

“The RISE-Graduate Research experience impacted my education because before interning at MD Anderson, I was curious about oncology but did not know much about the field. After my experience, I now not only understand how important cancer research is but now want to incorporate oncology in my future career goals,” says Brigham. 

The Aurora, Colorado native previously completed an internship at M.D. Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, Texas where she completed an undergraduate research internship in the Cancer Prevention Research Training Program. “After my experience, I now not only understand how important cancer research is but now I want to incorporate oncology in my future career goals”, said Brigham.   

The Faculty RISE-Undergraduate Research grant program provides funding that can be used to support undergraduate students to work on research or innovation projects.  The Division of Research & Innovation also sponsors the Faculty RISE-Graduate Research grant program.  The program supports faculty-mentored graduate students’ research and innovation activities.  

For Brigham, having the experience of exploring research can be eye-opening. “My advice to other students is to be very open about your interests. Rather than only saying you are interested in one field of medicine, be open to learning about others, because you might discover a new passion!” 

Brigham adds, “I believe it is important to do research because there are so many pieces of medicine to learn and discover. Research has given me the opportunity to understand more of these aspects of medicine,  and the desire to learn more.”  

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Karen B. Cotton