# Plains Bridges to the Baccalaureate Supplement

> **NIH NIH R25** · TEXAS TECH UNIVERSITY · 2020 · $69,651

## Abstract

PROJECT SUMMARY
 The COVID-19 pandemic presents a unique set of challenges for STEM education and authentic, in-
person, undergraduate research. There is a need for quality training resources and experiences for undergraduate students
that can be accessed virtually. Texas Tech University (TTU) will undertake a three-pronged approach to providing
these resources while leveraging the increased, societal interest in biomedical science. This approach will
complement the current, NIH-funded Plains Bridges to the Baccalaureate (PBB) Program and enhance the
recruitment and support of diverse undergraduate students in biomedical-science-related majors. TTU will
capitalize on successful models from other institutions to engage a broad audience in connecting quantitative and
scientific reasoning with current events. The approach will focus on the 1) development and delivery of an open-
enrollment, seminar course, “The Science & Math of COVID-19”; 2) development of virtual PBB research
training modules, “PBB Scholar Virtual Laboratory”; and 3) development of a free, public, online resource hub,
“TTU Virtual Lab Methods Repository.” The Science & Math of COVID-19 seminar course will help to spark
interest in the biomedical sciences while improving student quantitative and computational skills; lectures from
this seminar will be made available to PBB participants via the program’s Blackboard “course” where program
materials are hosted. The PBB Scholar Virtual Laboratory will provide enhanced research training for PBB
participants and will eventually be freely available online as a part of the TTU Virtual Lab Methods Repository.
These training modules will provide a strong preparation for TTU students to then register for an upper-level
course-based undergraduate research experience (CURE). Therefore, the supplement to the PBB program at TTU will
result in an enhanced biomedical research training environment at TTU and beyond.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10194888
- **Project number:** 3R25GM083730-12S1
- **Recipient organization:** TEXAS TECH UNIVERSITY
- **Principal Investigator:** Laci Alexander
- **Activity code:** R25 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2020
- **Award amount:** $69,651
- **Award type:** 3
- **Project period:** 2008-08-01 → 2024-07-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10194888

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10194888, Plains Bridges to the Baccalaureate Supplement (3R25GM083730-12S1). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-26 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10194888. Licensed CC0.

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