Scientific progress achieved through accessible pathways for aspiring researchers
In the vibrant academic community of the University of Rochester, the NEUROCITY program is making a significant impact by fostering the growth and development of underrepresented undergraduate students in neuroscience research. Launched in partnership with the City College of New York in the summer of 2021, NEUROCITY aims to provide hands-on neuroscience research experiences, mentorship, and academic and career development support for students from historically marginalized backgrounds.
One of the program's success stories is Chen Li, a graduate student in the Brain and Cognitive Sciences Department at the University of Rochester. During her participation in NEUROCITY in the summer of 2022, Li utilised the tools and expertise from the labs of both her mentors, Ian Fiebelkorn, PhD, in the Dynamics of Cognition Lab, and Manuel Gomez-Ramirez, PhD, in the Haptics Lab. Li is currently writing a manuscript for publication for a project she recently completed, which aims to understand the neural modulation that connects tactile and visual processes.
Another alumnus of the program, Jose Reynoso, is now a lab assistant in the Keane Vision & Psychosis Lab at the University of Rochester Medical Center. Reynoso, who grew up in the Bronx and was inspired by a high school psychology course, credits NEUROCITY for helping him figure out what he wanted to pursue after graduation and for his decision to go down a research path and pursue graduate school. During his time in NEUROCITY, Reynoso was in the lab of Duje Tadin, PhD, professor and chair of the Brain and Cognitive Sciences Department at the University of Rochester, and was part of a team that developed a new task to measure perceptual decision-making.
NEUROCITY scholars have also been co-authors of peer-reviewed scientific research. Yacinda Hernandez is a co-author of a paper published in PLOS ONE led by Tadin, while Jancy Contreras is a co-author on a paper led by Neuroscience Professor Julie Fudge, MD.
The program has placed nearly 30 undergraduate students from historically marginalized backgrounds in research labs across the University of Rochester and University of Rochester Medical Center campuses. Assistant Professor Brian Keane, PhD, Assistant Professor of Psychiatry at the University of Rochester Medical Center, supports the philosophy of NEUROCITY, taking bright, motivated students and providing them with experiences, tools, and instruction to pursue a career in neuroscience.
Manuel Gomez-Ramirez, PhD, assistant professor of Brain and Cognitive Sciences at the University of Rochester and chair of the Neuroscience Diversity Commission, stated that the program has been rewarding and inspirational. NEUROCITY is a collaboration with the Summer Scholars Program at the University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry, further expanding the opportunities for underrepresented students in neuroscience research.
As the NEUROCITY program continues to grow and evolve, its impact on the lives of underrepresented students and the field of neuroscience research cannot be overstated. For more authoritative and updated information on the program's structure and outcomes, please visit the official NEUROCITY program website or consult institutional announcements and academic publications.
The NEUROCITY program, with its focus on science, health-and-wellness, and education-and-self-development, is instrumental in empowering underrepresented undergraduate students by offering neuroscience research experiences, mentorship, and academic and career development support. Jose Reynoso, an alumnus of the program, found his passion for research and decided to pursue graduate school after being part of the program.
