8News from <strong>University</strong> AvenueProgram Aims to STEM Exodusof Minorities from the SciencesBy Janae JohnsonWhen children are asked “what do you want to be whenyou grow up,” common answers include “an astronaut,”“a doctor” or “a nurse.” Too often, though, minoritychildren are stymied in the pursuit of these science-basedcareers. <strong>Virginia</strong> <strong>State</strong> <strong>University</strong>, working closely witharea schools is embarking on a long-range solution to theunder-representation of minorities in these fields.As a part of a $1 milliongrant from the NationalScience Foundation (NSF,)<strong>Virginia</strong> <strong>State</strong> <strong>University</strong>created the Trojan—Science, Technology,Engineering andMathematics program(VSU T-STEM), aimed atincreasing the number ofminorities in thesedisciplines.Recently, VSU T-STEMimplemented a focusedprogram to directly assessand address the impactof a VSU/ Petersburgcommunity coalition onthe mathematicsperformance of minoritystudents. This project is thefirst step in a long-termpartnership among VSU;the Algebra Project, acivil/educational rightsprogram; and thePetersburg SchoolDistricts. The project will create a “K through college”model of intervention, with the ultimate goal ofincreasing African-American performance andparticipation in STEM majors and careers.Petersburg students have the lowest Standards ofLearning (SOL) pass rates of any <strong>Virginia</strong> school systemVIRGINIA STATE UNIVERSITY
News from <strong>University</strong> Avenue9on tests in math and science. The dropout rate inPetersburg is 6.9 %, again the highest of all local districtsand more than twice the average state rate. Thus fewstudents from this district achieve the academicbackground necessary for success in a STEM major incollege.In addition to under-prepared African American studentsdesiring a career in a STEM field, there is a much largerpool of students that would never even considerpursuing a science related major because of a weakbackground in mathematics or general lack of interest.“Our goal is to increase the number of graduates froman average of 70 to more than 105 by the end of thegrant,” says VSU Provost Dr. W. Eric Thomas, who servesas the Principal Investigator for the project.“The T-STEMprogram will have a significant, positive impact on VSU’sstrategies improving the quality of science andmathematics education.”Both lack of preparation of and lack of interest are majorfactors in the under representation of African Americansin STEM professions. VSU’s program will address bothissues. In addition to serving those students that havealready made it to college, albeit under prepared, theprogram will create a comprehensively trained team ofacademic and community leaders to support each otherthrough STEM activities, develop target interventionsand address critical needs to spark interests in studentsto pursue a career in the sciences.Training for VSU T-STEM faculty and teachers from thelocal school district will be provided by the AlgebraProject. The Algebra Project, an educational/civil rightsorganization founded by Dr. Robert Moses, has ademonstrated ability to develop a system that has beenextremely effective in teaching mathematics principlesand reasoning to low-performing African-Americanstudents.The Algebra Project has started an intervention withPetersburg, funded by the local Cameron Foundation,which will begin with the middle school grades, andthen move through high school, and down intoelementary schools. These interventions will besupplemented through teacher and community leadertraining and mathematics and science bridge programsfor students that will be held at VSU during the summers.These programs level the playing field for minorities tocompete in the job market. Childhood dreams of beinga doctor or an astronaut become more realistic withprograms like T-STEM that pay special attention to thedevelopment of minorities in science fields. VSU Receives $4 Million NIH Biomedical Research AwardThe National Center on Minority Health and HealthDisparities (NCMHD) of the National Institutes of Health(NIH) has announced the award of a $4 million researchgrant to support a Research Infrastructure in MinorityInstitutions (RIMI) program at <strong>Virginia</strong> <strong>State</strong> <strong>University</strong>.The aims of the five-year NCMHD-RIMI program are toreduce health disparities by providing resources toinstitutions that prepare significant number of minoritystudents and faculty in biomedical sciences.VSU-RIMI program objectives are to build researchcapacity for biomedical research at VSU, to promote theparticipation of faculty and students in biomedical andbehavioral research and to enhance academic programsin biomedical sciences and health disparities.The program proposes four major cores: administrative,shared resources/infrastructure, faculty developmentalresearch and academic enhancement. The RIMI researchcore consists of three subprojects related to diabetes,Alzheimer’s disease, and internal parasite infections.The RIMI program will include a VSU team headed byDr. W. Eric Thomas, Provost and Principal Investigator(PI); Dr. Larry Brown, Associate Dean, School ofEngineering, Science and Technology, Program Director;Dr. Ali Ansari, Acting Dean, School of Graduate Studies,Research and Outreach; and co-PI’s Dr. Godwin O.Mbagwu, Associate Dean, Research; Dr. Omar MiltonFaison; Dr. Glenn Harris; Dr. Brian Sayre; and Dr. JosephTritschler.With the RIMI program, VSU anticipates to double theresearch productivity within the five years of the projectperiod, which could be measured in the number ofpublications, funded proposals, number of studentsentering graduate school and total number of facultyparticipating in biomedical research. VIRGINIA STATE UNIVERSITY