Courtesy of GSU Communications
Grambling State University has been awarded a $350,000 National Institutes of Health (NIH) Gateway to Research Opportunities for the Workforce (GROW) Program contract to expand student access to biomedical research, strengthen STEM preparation and help high school and undergraduate students prepare for advanced study and careers in research and health-related fields.
The initiative is led by Dr. Dagne Hill, Chair of the Department of Biological Sciences, who serves as principal investigator, in partnership with Dr. Bassidy Dembele, Associate Professor of Mathematics, who serves as co-principal investigator.
The NIH GROW Program is a research capacity-building initiative designed to increase access to research experiences, strengthen STEM education and prepare participants to become more competitive candidates for advanced research training and educational opportunities in biomedical and health-related fields.
“This program gives undergraduate and high school students valuable exposure to research and hands-on scientific experiences,” Dr. Hill said. “By helping students develop these skills early, we can better prepare them to compete for research-intensive graduate programs and future careers in science and research.”
Through the contract, Grambling State will provide participants with research experiences, faculty mentoring, academic enrichment, professional development and career exploration. Students will gain experience across biological, biomedical, computational and quantitative sciences while strengthening research, analytical and scientific communication skills. The program will also support long-term mentoring relationships among students, faculty researchers and STEM professionals.
The collaboration between Biological Sciences and Mathematics is designed to expose students to the interdisciplinary approaches increasingly used in biomedical research. By combining biological sciences with quantitative analysis and data-driven methods, the program will help students build skills that are increasingly important in contemporary research environments.
“This contract creates additional opportunities for students to participate in meaningful STEM and biomedical research experiences,” said Theodore Callier, Vice President for Research and Sponsored Programs. “We are continuing to pursue federal and industry research contracts and cooperative agreements that strengthen student preparation and contribute to the development of a highly skilled STEM workforce.”
The NIH GROW contract also supports Grambling State University’s broader goals of increasing externally funded research, strengthening student success and contributing to economic and workforce development throughout the region.
The initiative officially began September 15, 2026, and is scheduled to continue through August 2028.
