High School Students Showcase CDU Summer Research Projects
CDU’s Research Day marked the culmination of two innovative summer programs — Project STRIDE and the Exposing Students to Regenerative Medicine (ExStRM) Program.
The event featured presentations from 20 local high school students who spent the summer immersed in biomedical research, with a focus on health disparities and cutting-edge regenerative medicine.
Project STRIDE, which stands for Students Training in Research Involving Disparity Elimination, offers 11th-grade students a comprehensive, hands-on research experience. Meanwhile, the ExStRM Program engages students in world-class regenerative medicine research, covering health areas such as sickle cell disease, cancer, and diabetes.
Throughout the ten-week programs, students worked full-time with mentors on various research projects addressing critical health issues that disproportionately affect underserved communities.
The Research Day presentations allowed these young scholars to showcase their findings to instructors, fellow students, and the broader campus community, highlighting the programs’ success in fostering the next generation of scientists and healthcare professionals.
Dolores E. Caffey-Fleming, Assistant Professor in the CDU College of Science and Health, serves as the Program Director for both Project STRIDE and ExStRM.
Under her leadership, these programs have played a vital role in promoting diversity within the health sciences and encouraging underrepresented students to pursue careers in biomedical research and regenerative medicine.
Project STRIDE is funded by the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation, and ExStRM is funded by the California Institute of Regenerative Medicine.
Both programs reflect CDU’s commitment to addressing and eliminating health disparities through education, research, and community engagement.