# Neuroscience Diversity to Elevate Education and Research Development

> **NIH NIH R25** · UNIVERSITY OF ARIZONA · 2024 · $269,196

## Abstract

Project Summary/Abstract:
The number of Native Americans (NA) entering the Science Technology Engineering and Mathematics (STEM)
workforce is the smallest proportion of any ethnicity. At the same time, this group faces tremendous health
disparities, with many directly linked to brain health. Education in, and awareness of, neuroscience-related health
issues in NA communities involves three inter-related challenges: lack of a workforce culturally attuned to NA
communities, systemic lack of capacity for on-site biomedical research, and significant mistrust of western
scientific research and researchers. The proposed program focuses on developing NA health professionals and
academic researchers who possess both cultural competence and trust from their communities, elements critical
to eliminating health disparities and minority representation in STEM fields.
In addressing these challenges, we first recognize that many NA students approach the world and the means to
investigate it from fundamentally different philosophical perspectives. In contrast to highly reductionist Western
models, traditional NA epistemological models are more holistic and narrative-based. Importantly, these
models, in which animate and inanimate entities are connected and interdependent, should not be seen as
pedagogic deficits, but rather as an innate strength that may allow these students to construct and expand upon
sophisticated mental models of current scientific knowledge. We have developed an educational program that
integrates established best pedagogical practices with neuroscience research learning experience. By
integrating the holistic perspectives of NA cultures with the scientific problem-based approach of neuroscience,
we will advance and enrich both perspectives.
The training program proposed herein is designed to create a pipeline of NA students to advance from their
undergraduate programs to post-baccalaureate neuroscience programs at top tier research universities, creating
a model of culturally grounded STEM education while bolstering NIH workforce and cultural diversity. We will
accomplish this goal through a series of interrelated aims. Our first specific aim is to develop and institute a
recruitment plan to attract NA students interested in neuroscience. Our second specific aim is to develop a
research experience and scientific training that integrates established best pedagogical practices with
neuroscience research. Specifically, we will focus on developing the scientific literacy of the students, providing
them with professional development opportunities and a sense of belonging within the academic community.
Our third specific aim is focused on providing a mentoring and retention system for NA students to successfully
transition into neuroscience graduate programs.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10933145
- **Project number:** 1R25NS138018-01
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF ARIZONA
- **Principal Investigator:** KATHLEEN E. RODGERS
- **Activity code:** R25 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2024
- **Award amount:** $269,196
- **Award type:** 1
- **Project period:** 2024-09-06 → 2029-08-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10933145

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10933145, Neuroscience Diversity to Elevate Education and Research Development (1R25NS138018-01). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-25 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10933145. Licensed CC0.

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