The purpose of RISE (Research Initiative for Scientific Enhancement) funding is to support and research activities that enhance the diversity of the biomedical, behavioral, and clinical research workforce. To this end, Northern Arizona University proposes to increase the number of Native American and other underrepresented scientists prepared to enter Ph.D.’s in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) fields specifically related to environmental health. This program uses the drivers of culturally relevant support, hands-on research experiences, and a tailored curriculum to increase the number of underrepresented undergraduates who successfully proceed to a master’s degree and master’s degree students who progress to the doctoral level.
Students served
At the time of application, students will meet the following guidelines:
- have a GPA of 3.0 or higher
- any student who will be an incoming junior or senior by the fall of the application year, or any qualified student wishing to apply as a first-year MS student
- must be citizens or non-citizen nationals of the United States or lawfully admitted U.S. permanent residents
- all students must be planning to be enrolled as full-time students at NAU during the period of their RISE program
- must be from one of the NIH-defined underrepresented groups in the U.S. Biomedical, Clinical, Behavioral and Social Sciences Research Enterprise:
- Blacks or African Americans, Hispanics or Latinos, American Indians or Alaska Natives, Native Hawaiians and other Pacific Islanders.
- individuals with disabilities
- individuals from disadvantaged backgrounds