Training and mentorship program in stem cell biology and engineering: A COMPASS for the future

This year we recruited our first cohort of trainees. Recruitment activities included working with The Educational Opportunity Program (EOP), the Disabled Students Program (DSP), the Opening New Doors to Accelerating Success (ONDAS) group, the Promise Scholars group, the Women, Gender & Sexual Equity Department, as well as UCSB communities such as UCSB Undocumented Student Services, UCSB Veteran’s Services, and BioNews – interdepartmental announcement system, to get out the word regarding the COMPASS program beginning at UCSB. These recruitment efforts were pivotal to reach students in our community that might not otherwise hear about opportunities available to them in the sciences here at UCSB. Recruitment activities took up much of the reporting year and they proved fruitful with 5 total recruits for our first cohort starting in September. All 5 students have begun rigorous training with their individual mentors to grow their skills and knowledge to set them up for success in their different research projects.In addition, our diverse cohort of trainees are actively engaged in mentoring activities, led by Mentorship and Recruitment lead, Dr. Britney Pennington. The trainees are planning outreach a patient engagement activities for the coming Spring quarter, including interactions with local K-12 teachers, community groups, and patient advocacy chapters.