# VCU Bridges to Baccalaureate: Dream to Goal

> **NIH NIH R25** · VIRGINIA COMMONWEALTH UNIVERSITY · 2021 · $120,762

## Abstract

Project Summary
The VCU Bridges to the Baccalaureate: Dream to Goal (DTG) Program, initiated in 2013, is an integrated student
development, teaching, learning, and research training program with partners Virginia Commonwealth University
(VCU), Thomas Nelson Community College (TNCC), and John Tyler Community College (JTCC). This faculty-
driven program builds on our successes and experience gained, and seeks to influence larger institutional and
system-wide changes. Our goals are to improve academic preparation and success of community college
Biology students from underrepresented (UR) groups, to augment UR STEM transfer and graduation rates, and
ultimately, to increase diversity in the biomedical/ behavioral sciences. Specifically, we aim to: 1) Nurture
talented UR STEM community college students who are interested in biomedical/ behavioral research careers,
by enriching the pre-transfer preparation component of the 8-week DTG Summer Research Program, providing
an optional 2-week extended Research Enrichment Internship, and encouraging/facilitating post-transfer
research activity; (2) Expand post-transfer support for DTG participants by developing an integrated support
program for DTG Scholars who transfer to VCU, and a “handover network” for DTG Scholars who transfer to
other universities in Virginia; (3) Co-develop and disseminate Course-based Undergraduate Research
Experience (CURE) modules for a VCCS general biology course (Bio 101 General Biology I), to be integrated
into all sections of this course taught at TNCC and JTCC; evidence-based teaching innovations will be
disseminated to the VCCS community and beyond. Measurable outcomes for each of these aims are consistent
with NIH goals for the Bridges to the Baccalaureate Program “to increase the pool of community college students
who go on to research careers in the biomedical sciences and will be available to participate in NIH-funded
research”. This project leverages other NIH-funded research training programs for UR STEM students at VCU.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10226946
- **Project number:** 5R25GM102795-09
- **Recipient organization:** VIRGINIA COMMONWEALTH UNIVERSITY
- **Principal Investigator:** Shijian Chu
- **Activity code:** R25 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2021
- **Award amount:** $120,762
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2013-08-01 → 2023-07-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10226946

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10226946, VCU Bridges to Baccalaureate: Dream to Goal (5R25GM102795-09). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-24 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10226946. Licensed CC0.

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