CSU Receives $1.3 million grant from National Institutes of Health to Train Biology and Physical Sciences Students

Chicago State University on Thursday announced a vital grant program supported by a grant from the National Institutes of Health to train students in biology and physical sciences has been renewed for an additional 4 years.

The renewal of the $1.3 million grant was heralded by Program Director Dr. Devi Potluri and Project Coordinator Dr. Warren Sherman. The Minority Biomedical Research Support-Research Initiative for Scientific Enhancement (MBRS-RISE) is a student training program funded by the National Institutes of Health.  The program goals are to encourage and prepare Chicago State University undergraduates for admission into academic doctoral degree programs in the life and physical sciences and future careers in leadership positions in biomedical research.

Since the initial funding of RISE in 2000, nine program alumni have earned PhD degrees in the biomedical sciences and more than 30 are currently enrolled in graduate programs. As a measure of the scientific impact of the program, alumni have published over 100 papers in peer-reviewed scientific journals.

Program activities include:

• Summer workshops/internships in which students learn research skills,
• Paid hands-on laboratory research internships at CSU during the academic semesters and in the summers,
• Travel awards to participate in summer research internships at research-intensive universities and National Labs,
• Travel awards to attend regional and national research conferences, and
• Workshops to guide students through the application process for admission to doctoral programs.

For more information on the program, please visit the website https://www.csu.edu/mbrs/