MORE Workshop

Understanding Interventions that Encourage Minorities to Pursue Research Careers: Major Questions and Appropriate Methods

May 3-4, 2007

American Association for the Advancement of Science
1200 New York Avenue, NW
Washington, DC

WORKSHOP SUMMARY RELEASED! A summary of the May 3-4, 2007, workshop has now been issued by the National Academies. Click to read, download, or purchase the complete workshop summary or a 4-page brief highlighting some key points.

The Fall 2007 issue of CBE-Life Sciences Education contains an article "From the National Academies" summarizing the MORE workshop. Click here to read or download.

Speaker presentations and other resources from the workshop (including an updated participant list) is available from the workshop agenda.

Several members of the workshop committee planned a second conference on Understanding Interventions, that was held May 2-4, 2008, in Atlanta. Please visit understandinginterventions.org for more information about this meeting.

NIH has issued the new Request for Application for the Research on Interventions that Promote Research Careers (R01): RFA-GM-09-011. Click here to access the RFA.



Statement of Task

The study and identification of contributing factors and practices that determine the effectiveness of interventions aimed at increasing the participation of underrepresented minorities in the biomedical and behavioral sciences is critical for program design and success. The National Academies will organize a public workshop that, among its goals, will include the following:

  • An examination of the current state of research related to interventions that influence the participation of underrepresented minorities in biomedical and behavioral sciences and other science, technology, engineering, and mathematics disciplines. This will include an assessment of factors relevant to studies in related disciplines such as psychology, sociology and economics.
  • The development of research questions that reflect contributions of various factors influencing outcomes. This would include the relationship of these factors to interdisciplinary approaches for scholarly work in the study of interventions that impact the participation of underrepresented minorities in the biomedical and behavioral sciences.
  • Technical assistance on implementing effective methodologies for studying interventions that impact the participation of underrepresented minorities in the biomedical and behavioral sciences.
  • The encouragement of an interdisciplinary community of scholars where outlets (e.g., journals, conferences, sponsored programs) for scholarly work and discourse are identified relevant to this area of study.

This public workshop will feature invited presentations and discussions. An individually authored summary of the workshop will be prepared by a designated rapporteur, who will not be a member of the ad hoc committee that will plan and conduct the event.

The workshop is organized by a committee of the National Research Council's Board on Life Sciences.

The project is sponsored by the Division of Minority Opportunities in Research, National Institute of General Medical Sciences, National Institutes of Health.