# Families for STEM success

> **NIH NIH U01** · CALIFORNIA STATE UNIVERSITY SAN MARCOS · 2021 · $332,611

## Abstract

Behavioral science research has firmly established that developing an identity as a scientist is a strong
predictor of persistence on the scientific research career path, yet little is known about how LatinX
science majors balance their scientific and ethnic identities and how parental support could foster identity
balance. The long-term goal is to understand the impact of balancing science and ethnic identities on
attrition from the biomedical science career pipeline, and to test the utility of an intervention designed to
foster identity balance.
The proposed research employs a quasi-experimental, matched control, longitudinal design, to measure
the impact of an intervention program with parents of incoming LatinX biomedical science majors. The
specific aims are: 1) to measure the immediate impact of the workshop on LatinX parents’ knowledge of
and attitudes about science, the value of a science degree, and the compatibility between scientific
research and LatinX heritage. 2) to measure the impact of the parental intervention on the short and long-
term academic persistence and success of LatinX biomedical science students. 3) to measure the impact of
the parental intervention on students’ science identity across time, and the balance between their science
and LatinX identities, and 4) to assess the degree to which the effects of the parental intervention on short
and longer-term academic outcomes are mediated through scientific-LatinX identity balance.
Biomedical discoveries and public health clearly benefit from a diverse biomedical workforce. LatinX
parents are a largely untapped, and potentially powerful, resource for decreasing LatinX student flight
from the biomedical science career path. The research proposed in this application is innovative because
balanced identity design offers a new theoretical approach to understanding how students navigate and
balance multiple identities to maintain a strong identity as a scientific researcher. An early intervention
with parents has the potential to alter students’ social context to support identity balance. This project is
significant because it will provide a theory-driven rigorous empirical understanding how parental
education and support can help LatinX biomedical science students achieve academically and balance a
strong LatinX identity with an emerging science identity. This parent intervention programs could
significantly increase the pool of qualified LatinX doctoral program applicants in less than a decade. A
larger pool of diverse and qualified doctoral students has the potential to increase the diversity of the
biomedical science workforce by 2040.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10242850
- **Project number:** 5U01GM138437-02
- **Recipient organization:** CALIFORNIA STATE UNIVERSITY SAN MARCOS
- **Principal Investigator:** Anna Woodcock
- **Activity code:** U01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2021
- **Award amount:** $332,611
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2020-09-01 → 2023-08-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10242850

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10242850, Families for STEM success (5U01GM138437-02). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-21 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10242850. Licensed CC0.

---

*[NIH grants dataset](/datasets/nih-grants) · CC0 1.0*