Expansion of the Short-Term Research Experience Program to Unlock Potential (STEP-UP) (R25 Clinical Trial Not Allowed)

May 2024 Council

Lead Division/Office

OMHRC

Point(s) of Contact

Robert Rivers, Ph.D.; Fanta Kamara

Executive Summary

Historically, opportunities in this country have been mired by lack of resources based on a person’s zip code. To address the myriad of health problems facing the country and the world, it is imperative that the full diversity of the United States is engaged in the biomedical research workforce. Moreover, from research, we know that more diverse teams tend to be more innovative than homogenous groups. To ensure that the biomedical research workforce encompasses talent with no boundaries on opportunity for talent, the NIDDK Short-Term Research Experience to Unlock Potential (STEP-UP) program was launched to provide hands-on research experiences to both high school and undergraduate students. For more than 20 years, this program has engaged students from throughout the country and US territories to work with researchers on the cutting edge of discovery. In this renewal, we seek to expand the program in partnership with the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute to have more high school centers located throughout the country. No changes are sought in the undergraduate program as the modifications made in the last round.