News

_{Pictured: Gregory B. Carey, PhD and SUMMIR student Alisa Davis.}

Published on UMSOM website, Adapted by: Ashley DeMaio | August 8, 2025

In a moment when proposed Federal budget cuts threaten the future of biomedical research and training, more than 150 student interns—from middle school through medical school—presented their scientific abstracts last month at the annual summer Student Research Forum. Headed by the University of Maryland School of Medicine‘s (UMSOM) Office of Student Research, the event highlighted the value of investing in the next generation of biomedical innovators. 

“The more than 17 programs we offer to students provide an excellent opportunity to recruit talent from broader and deeper pools,” said Gregory B. Carey, PhD, Associate Dean for Biomedical and Health Profession Pathways and Workforce Development and Assistant Dean for Student Research and Education at UMSOM, who hosted the event. “These summer scholars often become contributing members to the healthcare and biomedical research enterprises. This drives immediate economic growth and pays long-term dividends through their creative ideas and innovations.”

Concerns About Future NIH Funding

While funding from state and city sources and non-profit organizations like the American Cancer Society contribute to these programs, the bulk of the funding comes from federal entities like the National Institutes of Health.

“Cuts to NIH and National Cancer Institute funding could mean a loss of $27 million in funding for these programs, which could mean downsizing or even outright cancellation,” said UMSOM Dean Mark T. Gladwin, MD, who is also the Vice President for Medical Affairs, University of Maryland, Baltimore, and the John Z. and Akiko K. Bowers Distinguished Professor, and met with students as they presented their findings at the Research Forum. “Cultivating the next generation of biomedical researchers and physician-scientists is essential to addressing our most pressing health challenges, and we take great pride in the more than 1,000 student alumni who have participated in our programs through the years, many of whom have gone on to influential careers in the STEM fields.”

Added Brett Hassel, PhD, Assistant Director for Training & Education for the Marlene and Stewart Greenebaum Comprehensive Cancer Center (UMGCCC) and Director of the Nathan Schnaper Intern Program in Translational Cancer Research (NSIP), “We estimate that the 18 alumni of just three of our student research programs, NSIP, PRISM, and UM Scholars, who currently doing research or in graduate school alone generate $2 million in financial return to our institution. Sustaining these programs represents a critical investment in the future of both the UMSOM and our larger national workforce.”

One such example is Jennie Law, MD, Associate Professor of Medicine at UMSOM and director of the sickle cell disease clinic at UMGCCC. In 2005, she participated in the NSIP, which is supported through the NCI Cancer Research Education Grants Program (R25), and brings undergraduate students from across the nation to UMGCCC to conduct translational cancer research with faculty mentors.   

“As oncologists, we are very reliant on the studies conducted by our basic and translational science collaborators. But when I think back to medical school, translational research seemed very abstract to me,” Dr. Law said. “NSIP helped make the practice and possibilities of research concrete for me in a way that is still extremely valuable to me in my roles today.”

Students’ Research Ranged from Sleep Disorders to Shark Immune Cells

At this year’s summer research forum, students presented on research areas as varied as pediatric sleep disorders, comparative immunology, and computer modeling of cancer cell types.

As a participant in the PRISM program, which pairs UMSOM medical students with faculty mentors, second-year UMSOM medical student and former UM Scholar Sabrina Nusraty, presented her findings on pediatric sleep disorders from her work with Amal Isaiah, MD, DPhil, MBA, a UMSOM Professor of Otorhinolaryngology, Nusraty found that parental reports and outpatient laboratory testing were better predictors of whether a sleep disorder was causing issues with focus and attention in children than the in-clinic sleep studies that pediatricians routinely recommend. “This finding has the potential to remove an added cost and obstacle for patients and families in managing their child’s sleep disorder,” Nusraty said.

Before coming to UMSOM, Nusraty also participated in the UM Scholars program as an undergraduate at the University of Maryland, College Park (UMCP), which she credits with putting her on the path to medical school. “I had doubts because no one in my family is in health care. I can’t emphasize enough how important the UM Scholars program was in empowering me with confidence,” Nusraty said. “UM Scholars, and now PRISM, have shown me this career path is attainable for me.” 

The UM Scholars program is a paid summer research experience that connects students from UMCP and University of Maryland, Baltimore with faculty mentors at the opposite campus and with leadership at the Maryland Department of Health (MDH). It is a strategic initiative of the University of Maryland Strategic Partnership: MPowering the State (MPower).

Najah Johnson, a sophomore at Virginia Tech majoring in dairy science, presented a poster on her research studying shark immune cells with her mentor Helen Dooley, PhD, a UMSOM Associate Professor of Microbiology and Immunology, whose work was recently highlighted on WYPR’s Radiolab program. Johnson received funding from the newest UMSOM student program, called SUMMIR, which is funded by NIH to support undergraduates interested in microbiology and immunology.

Inspired as Teens in CURE Program to Enter STEM Fields

Johnson, a native Marylander, became interested in a STEM career while participating in the two UMB mentoring programs, UMB-CURE  and RAMP in middle and high school, respectively. 

“I always knew I wanted to be a vet, but I never knew how to get there,” Johnson said. “CURE and RAMP taught me everything I needed to know about the Lab — safety, working with a principal investigator, and reading the literature. If I didn’t have those programs, I honestly don’t think I would be at Virginia Tech.”

Lynijah Russell, a rising sophomore at St. Mary’s College (SMCM), majoring in computer science, also came to her academic path through the CURE and RAMP programs, which are supported by a mixture of National Cancer Institute (NCI), National Institute of General Medical Sciences, NIH, UMB, and private funding. “At my West Baltimore middle school, science class was busy work —  like coloring a volcano drawing,” Russell said. “CURE gave me experience with science, math, and medicine, helped me find my passion, and molded me into who I am today.” 

This summer, Russell was selected as a SHORES scholar through a UMSOM-SMCM partnership that supports outstanding SMCM students to participate in a summer research internship. She was also accepted into the NCI-funded NSIP cancer research program to conduct research under the mentorship of Daniel Bergman, PhD, a UMSOM Assistant Professor of Pharmacology and Physiology who recently published a paper in the journal Cell using software to create mathematical models of cancer cells. Russell’s research project involved creating a new function for that software. It allows anyone to create a ready simulation populated by multiple cells of many types without needing to write new code for each simulation. 

“A process that used to take a long time because of human error now is sped up and can create simulations that are super fast,” Russell said. “A five-day petri dish cycle is now a two-minute simulation.”

The real discoveries and advancements made by all the students participating in the Research Forum highlight how the student research programs not only help cultivate the next generation of physicians and scientists, but also bring real value to the faculty mentors that host the students in their labs, according to Tonya Webb, PhD, Associate Director for Workforce Excellence and Development at UMGCCC and Assistant Dean of Student Engagement and Student Life at UMSOM. 

“Over the past nine to 10 weeks, these talented college students have immersed themselves in rigorous biomedical and cancer research, diving into experiments, analyzing data, and asking critical questions, and contributing meaningfully to the scientific discoveries happening every day in our labs,” she said. “We’re thankful for their energy, curiosity, and commitment to discovery, and look forward to seeing where their journey takes them next.”

Dr. Carey is hopeful that other sources of funding can be found to support the student research programs and the many benefits they provide. 

“The programs provide an excellent opportunity to recruit talent from broader and deeper pools. Scholars who, as they become contributing members to the healthcare and biomedical research enterprises, drive immediate economic growth and pay long-term dividends through their creative ideas and innovations,” he said. “All of this goes away as the support stops flowing and the talent and revenue pools dry up.”