Pathway program proves access can cultivate scientists
In the summer of 2021, the Del Monte Institute for Neuroscience Diversity Commission and the City College of New York launched the partnership program NEUROCITY. By collaborating with the Summer Scholars Program at the University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry, organizers were able to launch the program that has, to date, put nearly 30 undergraduate students from historically marginalized backgrounds in research labs across the University of Rochester and 麻豆视频 campuses.
鈥淭his has been a really rewarding experience,鈥� said Manuel Gomez-Ramirez, PhD, assistant professor of and chair of the Neuroscience Diversity Commission. 鈥淚t has been great to see these students, many of whom have minimal research experience, come in and do such a phenomenal job in just 10 weeks. The grit, resolve, and commitment they have displayed has been greatly inspirational.鈥� NEUROCITY has created a pathway to neuroscience research and, for some students, has transformed their future plans.
鈥淸狈贰UROCITY] was a very big reason for helping me figure out what I wanted to pursue after graduation,鈥� said Jose Reynoso, an alumnus of the program who now works in a research lab at the Medical Center. 鈥淚t is the main reason why I want to go down a research path and pursue graduate school.鈥�
Reynoso grew up in the Bronx. Curious about human behavior since childhood, he credits a high school psychology course for giving him his first glimpse into neuroscience. 鈥淭hat is when I started to learn about the mechanisms in the brain that cause some people to behave differently. That is when I knew I wanted to go into science. I majored in psychology at CCNY, and when I learned about the NEUROCITY program, I saw it as a great opportunity to find out if I wanted to pursue research.鈥�
During his time in NEUROCITY, he was in the of , professor and chair of the Brain and Cognitive Sciences Department at the University of Rochester. Reynoso was part of a team that developed a new task to measure perceptual decision-making. The experiment aims to improve our understanding of how we make small decisions. Like how our brain determines that a sign is a stop sign when driving through the fog, as opposed to a clear, sunny day.
鈥淭here was a clear point where I realized Jose was well suited for research and would excel at it. At our first research meeting, I asked him if he had any questions. At this point, most students ask 1-2 questions. In contrast, Jose pulled out his notebook and went through a long list of questions that showed he was well prepared for the meeting and that he had a good understanding of the research we were discussing,鈥� Tadin said. 鈥淏eing a mentor in NEUROCITY has been an immensely rewarding experience. Broadening access to research is one of the best things we can do to facilitate scientific advancement.鈥�
Reynoso at final NEUROCITY poster presentation, summer 2022. Poster Title: Mechanisms of perceptual decision-making. // photo by Ben Lovell / Graduate Education and Postdoctoral Affairs When Reynoso was finishing his senior year, he planned to take a year off before deciding if graduate school was the right path for him until he enrolled in the program. But after ten weeks in Rochester, he took his first step toward graduate school and enrolled in the 麻豆视频Post-baccalaureate Research Education Program (PREP). As a result, he is now submitting his first first-author paper that investigates reaching movements guided by vision and proprioception. Today, Reynoso is a lab assistant in the Keane Vision & Psychosis Lab at the 麻豆视频 (URMC) and is applying to graduate schools this fall.
鈥淚 am very much on board with the philosophy of NEUROCITY鈥攖aking bright, motivated students who may have fewer opportunities or more challenging backgrounds and then providing them with experiences, tools, and instruction so that they can successfully pursue a career in neuroscience,鈥� said Assistant Professor of Psychiatry Brian Keane, PhD. 鈥淛ose has been fantastic so far. He has jumped right into the varied tasks I have thrown at him. He is highly reliable and a nice person to have in the lab.鈥�
Forging her path to Neuroscience
鈥淚t was amazing. Clearly, since I am still here,鈥� Chen Li said. Li participated in NEUROCITY in the summer of 2022. Today, she is a graduate student in the Brain and Cognitive Sciences Department (BCS) at the University of Rochester. 鈥淏ecause the University is an R01 research University, I had access to incredible tools. It showed me what a research career would look like.鈥�
As a NEUROCITY scholar, Li worked in the Dynamics of Cognition Lab at the URMC. Its principal investigator, Ian Fiebelkorn, PhD, assistant professor of Neuroscience, continues to mentor her alongside Assistant Professor Gomez-Ramirez, PhD, principal investigator of the in BCS. 鈥淏efore NEUROCITY, I was confused. I did not know if I wanted to pursue my PhD. I had heard horror stories about how difficult it was to be in graduate school,鈥� said Li. 鈥淏ut by the end of the program, I think because of the people I met here, including my mentors, it solidified my decision to come here.鈥�
鈥淐hen has grown exponentially as a researcher throughout the ten weeks in my lab as a NEUROCITY student and now as a graduate student,鈥� Fiebelkorn said. 鈥淚t has been a pleasure watching her confidence and research skills expand.鈥�
Chen Li, a graduate student in the Brian and Cognitive Sciences program at the University of Rochester, works with Ian Fiebelkorn, PhD, at his lab in the School of Medicine and Dentistry at the 麻豆视频. // photo by J. Adam Fenster / University of Rochester
鈥淭he NEUROCITY program is an enriching experience, not only for the participants but also for our labs. NEUROCITY students provide enthusiasm and a different perspective on our work, and graduate students and postdoctoral scholars get an important opportunity to provide additional mentorship.鈥�
Li has taken those new skills and confidence and has created a project that utilizes the tools and expertise from the labs of both her mentors. She aims to understand the inner workings of neural modulation that connects the tactile and visual processes鈥攈ow we touch and see.
鈥淚 want to understand how the brain modulates between the two different stimuli,鈥� said Li. 鈥淔or example, if you were in a task and you were given two sets of stimuli, like visual and tactile, how would your brain process the stimuli together and separately.鈥� She utilizes the Haptics Lab to understand the tactile component and the Dynamics of Cognition Lab to study the visual processes.
鈥淚t has been really fulfilling to see the growth that NEUROCITY scholars, like Chen, experience throughout the program,鈥� said Gomez-Ramirez. 鈥淐hen started in my lab in the Spring semester of 2023, and she is currently writing a manuscript for publication for a project she recently completed. This level of progress in such a short period is extraordinary and speaks to her level of commitment and determination. And, quite frankly, many of the students in NEUROCITY exhibit these same qualities.鈥�
As a result of the program, NEUROCITY scholars have also been co-authors of peer-reviewed scientific research. Yacinda Hernandez is a co-author of a paper published in led by Tadin. Jancy Contreras is a co-author on a paper led by Neuroscience Professor Julie Fudge, MD, in .
