MBRS RISE Program at California State Univ, San Marcos

California State University San Marcos, San Marcos CA

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Abstract

The CSU San Marcos Rise Program will increase the pool of racial and ethnic minority students who go on to pursue professional careers in the biomedical sciences. The program has three Developmental Activities: Student, Faculty, and Institutional all contributing to Enhancing the Research Environment. Since our campus is young, a RISE Program will help us shape a culture for our racial and ethnic minority science students while pursuing graduate student study is a serious and achievable option. Our Undergraduate Student Development Plan has six measurable goals. The goals include Student Recruitment, Student Retention, Enhancement of Student Academic Credentials, Development of Leadership and Teamwork Skills, Participation in Research, and Placement into Graduate School. Twenty-eight Undergraduate RISE Scholars (URS) will be chosen using a rigorous selection procedure. URS will participate in a set of activities designed to make them competitive for admission to prestigious graduate schools. These activities include participation in a rigorous curriculum research training and, research seminars and conduct sponsored research leading to scientific publications. Our students will development of strong skills in critical thinking, problem solving, communication, leadership, and teamwork that skills including enhancement of communication skills in our RS will be introduced to first-year students and regularly improved and assessed. Finally, URS will participate in a set of activities designed to place them into graduate Recruitment,, Enhancement of Student Academic Credentials, Participation in Research, and Placement into Graduate School. Our Graduate Program will select 4 Graduate RISE Scholars (GRS) in each of the first two years of the program and increase to 6 for years 3 and 4 of the program. At the GRS they will participate in a set of activities similar to those described for the URS and they will assume additional responsibilities as mentors and role models with UCLA, UCSD, UCI, UCSC and UCR. The Faculty Development Plan will have a set of activities designed to increase the research enthusiasm and productivity and enhance the mentoring expertise of the participating faculty. The Institutional Development Plan will advocate for campus adoption and funding of successful RISE activities. Our Evaluation Plan provides measurable objectives and assessment criteria for each project goal using formative and summative evaluation to determine achievement of project objectives. The national RISE Program's goal and the CSUSM strategic plan are in perfect alignment. The regional minority population growth, campus commitment to diversity, the extensive experience of the proposed program director, and the new science buildings equipped with modern scientific instruments and powerful instructional resources make CSUSM an ideal location to initiate an MBRS-RISE Program.