# Promoting diversity in research careers in diabetes, digestive and kidney diseases

> **NIH NIH R25** · UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS HLTH SCIENCE CENTER · 2020 · $258,667

## Abstract

This proposal is a competitive renewal of the Penn State STEP-UP program initially funded in 2007
and renewed in 2011. The program is designed to provide short-term experience and training in
biomedical research for undergraduate students from racial/ethnic-underrepresented groups, and for
students from disadvantaged backgrounds. For the renewal, Penn State is joining with the University
of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio (UTHSCSA) to enhance recruitment of URM students
and increase the scope of student research experiences. W. Brian Reeves, M.D., Chair of Medicine at
UTHSCSA and previously the PI of Penn State STEP-UP will serve as the contact PI. Dr. Gail Matters,
who has served as the Program Coordinator since 2007 will serve as the Penn State PI. Progress
under the current award period has been excellent. 227 students have matriculated through the Penn
State STEP-UP program in its first ten years. Penn State has made targeted recruitment efforts
through several minority student organizations which have resulted in a large increase in the number
of applications received. Applications now exceed available positions by a 5:1 ratio. Since its inception
over 64% of Penn State STEP-UP alumni are either enrolled in or have completed post-graduate
education in the biomedical sciences and an additional 18% are employed in biomedical fields. The
current proposal builds on the successes of the current STEP-UP program and significantly expands
the mentoring activities to provide more sustained support to the students. The plan provides
background and hands-on experience in research related to the mission of NIDDK. The plan also
provides for technical advising and mentoring of students during their hands-on research experience,
at a summer-end research symposium and during the subsequent academic year. The aims of the
proposal are: 1. Provide a hands-on research experience through which students will learn how
discovery, clinical and translational research are conducted and the results are disseminated to others.
2. Provide mentoring and career development activities to enhance entry and retention of students in
biomedical research. The curriculum will also include discussions on normative standards of conduct,
privacy and confidentiality issues, laboratory safety, research integrity, record keeping, data
management, and communication skills. Although the primary goal of this proposal is to increase the
number and competence of members of underrepresented groups in biomedical research, an
important secondary benefit is to expand the proportion of underrepresented population who
understand that life-style decisions have great consequences for their personal health and that of their
family, friends and community.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 9858326
- **Project number:** 5R25DK078381-14
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS HLTH SCIENCE CENTER
- **Principal Investigator:** Gail L. Matters
- **Activity code:** R25 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2020
- **Award amount:** $258,667
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2007-06-01 → 2022-02-28

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/9858326

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 9858326, Promoting diversity in research careers in diabetes, digestive and kidney diseases (5R25DK078381-14). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-24 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/9858326. Licensed CC0.

---

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