Thursday, May 9, 2024
5/9/2024
PROJECT SUMMARY/ABSTRACT We have developed the program, Pipeline for Aging Research Career Training (PACT). The project is a research education and mentoring program featuring students and faculty from an urban University in Washington, DC, three regional undergraduate Minority Serving Institutions (MSIs), and a respected and experienced laboratory training center. A team of MSTEM faculty from Georgetown, North Carolina Central and Hampton Universities will train and mentor underserved students in aging research topics including health equity. The program will be enhanced by mentoring and educational activities that include presentations from experts in Aging Science in the Washington, D.C. area Awareness, confidence, and mentored lab research training provide students the tools to graduate college with a science degree and pursue graduate studies in biomedical science. Training programs can be transformative experiences that introduce students to a new vocabulary of scientific terms, concepts and career development strategies. The PACT program we propose is designed to provide those key experiences. The goal of the NIA R25 program is to “encourage individuals from diverse backgrounds to pursue further studies or careers in biomedical research.” The program proposed is creatively designed to support that goal. The impact of this program will be the successful training and mentoring of 15 undergraduate students each year. The trainees will gain facility in research practice and techniques by participating in an intensive residential 6-day summer laboratory training course at the Georgetown University BioScience training labs. Lectures and laboratories are designed to highlight aging science topics and use of cell types and reagent kits and techniques relevant in aging research. Undergraduate trainees will be matched with mentors and train in a laboratory for an additional 8 weeks in the summer and the academic year. Structured mentoring and career development activities will continue to be provided with a focus on discovery of career choices in aging disciplines. In leveraging the central Washington D.C site, an annual Aging Research forum will be hosted on the GU campus for trainees and mentors. Research project findings will be presented by summer trainees. The forum will feature a panel of NIH and Aging experts who will present on topics in Geroscience and Health Equity and aging career trends and introduce students to further opportunities for training. The PACT program plan will enhance underserved student participation in bioscience research and provide confidence and exposure to continue on with a career in aging.
HHS’ Tracking Accountability in Government Grants System (TAGGS) website provides access to detailed descriptions of grants, loans, aggregated direct payments and other types of financial assistance awarded by the HHS Operating Divisions (OPDIVs) and the Office of the Secretary Staff Divisions (STAFFDIVs).
