Educational Initiatives
Dr. Winkleby leads several educational initiatives designed to prepare high school students from low-income and under-represented backgrounds to enter college, graduate and/or medical school, and, eventually, science- and health-related careers.
- The Stanford Medical Youth Science Program (SMYSP) is a five-week summer residential program, established in 1988, that provides educational enrichment in the biological and medical sciences, college admissions support, and long-term mentoring to low-income high school students who have faced personal adversity.
- The Minority K-12 Initiative for Teachers and Students (MKITS) is a grant from the National Institutes of Health that supports SMYSP and a partnership with under-resourced high schools to deliver science curricula and college guidance to students, and training about public health research and health careers to teachers.
- The Stanford School-Based Science Initiative (FIPSE) program is a grant from the Department of Education to improve post-secondary education. It supports SMYSP and offers training to low-income high school students on the scientific process and inquiry-based science, and provides exposure to colleges and interactions with health professionals. The initiative also promotes dissemination of “best practices” from high school pipeline programs at Schools of Medicine and Public Health throughout the country.
- The Access to Achievement Education Foundation is a non-profit organization established in 2005 that seeks to ensure the long-term continuity and funding for SMYSP, and to support, promote, and disseminate model programs that enhance educational achievement among low-income students interested in science and health.
