# The MADURA Program: Mentorship for Advancing Diversity in Undergraduate Research on Aging

> **NIH NIH R25** · UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, SAN DIEGO · 2020 · $370,979

## Abstract

I. Abstract
The proposed UC San Diego MADURA (Mentorship for Advancing Diversity in Undergraduate Research on
Aging) Program responds to the NIA ADAR R25 Training Program Announcement, to offer under-represented
Hispanic/Latino undergraduates tailored, longitudinal mentorship, training and work experiences with
researchers and clinicians focused on aging and Alzheimer's disease. It will provide effective, sustained
academic and social support, skills training and supervision, to foster academic success and retention over the
near term, and subsequent increased rates of application for aging-related graduate training or employment,
thereby improving inclusion in the field. The MADURA project is designed to achieve these goals through a
multi-component program comprised of: career-relevant Individual, Paid Aging and Alzheimer's Disease
Research-related Internship Placements with researcher/clinician mentors (8 hours/week); Paid Weekly
Group Mentorship/Training Meetings, facilitated by a team of doctoral level trainers and research faculty (2
hours per week); integrated, tailored Professional Development Experiences (some with additional funding
support); Guided Outreach Experiences for a partner high school that serves potential first generation
college attendees; and formal curriculum and process development activities and rigorous evaluation,
enabling continuous quality improvements and future dissemination. UC San Diego is an emerging Hispanic
Serving Institution with a deep field of diversity-promoting academic support and Hispanic/Latino student
groups, centers and services which welcome collaboration with the MADURA Program. The MADURA
Program is innovative in depth, comprehensiveness and integration of its evidence-based supportive elements:
student pay, broad array of experiential placements, full integration of weekly Group Mentorship and tailored
Training (provided by skilled aging research facilitators from similar cultural backgrounds), co-occurring peer
mentorship and support, and finally, its fidelity to rigorous evaluation and dissemination of results and
materials. MADURA is positioned for success, given the convergence of experienced program leadership,
strong program development and evaluation teams, pay for students who must earn income in order to stay in
school, exemplary willing advisors and complimentary training activity partners, and existing linkages with
Hispanic/Latino student networks. The carefully conceptualized MADURA Program brings together the
leadership, advisors, training and placement experiences to successfully promote diversity in
Aging/Alzheimer's disease MSTEM careers for participating Hispanic/Latino undergraduates, within the
nurturing context of a University energized around improving diversity and inclusion.
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## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 9937455
- **Project number:** 1R25AG066594-01
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, SAN DIEGO
- **Principal Investigator:** Steven Dyal Edland
- **Activity code:** R25 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2020
- **Award amount:** $370,979
- **Award type:** 1
- **Project period:** 2020-09-15 → 2025-08-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/9937455

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 9937455, The MADURA Program: Mentorship for Advancing Diversity in Undergraduate Research on Aging (1R25AG066594-01). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-23 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/9937455. Licensed CC0.

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