Project Grant R25ES036012

The Trustees of Columbia University in the City of New York, through its Health Sciences Division, has been awarded a $132,347 Project Grant from the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS) under the Environmental Health (CFDA 93.113) federal grant program. The grant will fund the development of the Bronx Environmental Health Summer Training for Justice (BESTJUSTICE) program, which aims to provide accessible, locally relevant summer research experiences in environmental health science (EHS) for high school students from marginalized communities in the Bronx and Manhattan. Over a 5-year period, the program will annually enroll 12 students to participate in an 8-week curriculum that includes STEM-focused project-based courses, environmental justice training, and mentored EHS research. The program also seeks to provide the students with skills and guidance to strengthen their applications for undergraduate programs or technical schools, especially in STEM and EHS-related fields. By expanding an existing STEM initiative between Columbia University, a Bronx public high school, and a local non-profit organization, the BESTJUSTICE program intends to increase the number of students from underrepresented backgrounds who pursue careers in environmental health science and other STEM disciplines.