STEM RISE: Research Opportunities for Third Ward Students
NSM and UH College of Medicine Collaborate With Jack Yates High School
To combat the underrepresentation of minorities in STEM fields, University of Houston scientists, professors and students are coalescing to provide research opportunities to high school students in Houston’s underserved Third Ward neighborhood.
The STEM Research Inquiry Summer Experience program is a collaboration between NSM, NSM’s teachHOUSTON program, the new UH College of Medicine and Jack Yates High School in the Third Ward.
“This program truly has an impact that extends beyond one group of students,” said Mariam Manuel, director of STEM RISE student success and a teachHOUSTON instructional assistant professor. “We’re bringing different fields of STEM together at different grade levels. They are all embarking on a summer STEM research experience by participating in research in the lab, but also receiving mentorship and support outside of the lab.”
STEM RISE for Yates Students Starts Summer 2022
Beginning summer 2022, selected Jack Yates students will work alongside undergraduate STEM majors and medical students on original research projects in UH’s numerous STEM laboratories and prepare a report of their findings. They will all have the opportunity to present their research at both national and local competitions and conferences.
“The STEM RISE experience helps to demystify the scientific process and shows young students that a career in science and medicine is available to them,” said Thomas Thesen, director of the STEM RISE research experience and associate professor of neuroscience at the College of Medicine.
Jack Yates students will be mentored by UH medical students, undergraduate STEM majors and STEM faculty to learn lab techniques and tools, how to be a part of an active research team and experience campus life at a research university.
Along with their lab work, high school participants will also attend customized STEM lessons, facilitated by teachHOUSTON pre-service teachers that will support their understanding of the research. As part of their training, preservice STEM teachers will enroll in a Research Methods in STEM course, which will include informal learning opportunities. The course will be taught by Jacqueline Ekeoba, director of STEM RISE instruction and a teachHOUSTON lecturer.
NSF Funding and NSM Alumna Patrice O. Yarbough Support STEM RISE
Funded through a National Science Foundation grant of $299,960 for three years, additional support comes from generous donor Patrice O. Yarbough, a NASA Silver Achievement Medalist and retired senior scientist at NASA Johnson Space Center.
She recently established the Dr. Patrice O. Yarbough Research Gateway scholarships and fellowships to support students of color who are NSM majors. Recipients of the Yarbough summer fellowship have the opportunity to participate in STEM RISE in the summer of 2022.
“As a graduate of Jack Yates High School class of 1976 and a graduate of the University of Houston College of Natural Sciences and Mathematics (’80, Ph.D. ’85), it brings me great joy that STEM RISE is creating a bridge for Houston Third Ward students,” Yarbough said. “It is a bridge to scientific discovery, to science education, and to health and medicine. STEM RISE is addressing an unmet need for our Houston community; the outcome will be to build a pipeline of talent to diversify the STEM workforce.”
When she was a student at Jack Yates, she participated in a six-week summer research experience at UH, which ignited her love for STEM.
Rebeca Trejo, College of Natural Sciences and Mathematics