Summer lab experience at UTSA engages students in STEM, promotes science retention

AUGUST 1, 2024 — When Stephanie Villalon ’18 shifted her focus to STEM education, the need for support in underrepresented communities became abundantly clear.

For Villalon, growing up in Port Lavaca, Texas, where the only high school neighbored a corn field, her notion of science didn’t expand beyond becoming a doctor. The then-graduate student was continuing her studies at UTSA after completing her bachelor’s in biology but unsure which route to take next.

But a research project led her to a new horizon and the start of her nonprofit, STEMSTART Enrichment. The idea behind Villalon’s nonprofit organization is to help young students realize there are various opportunities offered to students who pursue a STEM degree.

“The great part about this program is students get a different look at science other than what you see in a textbook.”

A student presents their research during the Neuroscience, Developmental and Regenerative Biology Pre-Freshman Research Experience.

“When I was in my undergraduate studies, I struggled a lot. At one point, I worked two jobs, so that also played a part, but I think the most important part was me realizing students need to figure out very quickly what interests them and providing the right opportunities for them to succeed,” Villalon said. “The nonprofit started as a way for me to reach out to these students and tell them there’s a lot of different career paths you can take when you go into college as a STEM major. Then the next layer was involving them in other portions of growing their careers with hands-on opportunities.”

With support from the UTSA Department of Neuroscience, Developmental and Regenerative Biology, her efforts came to life.

The Neuroscience, Developmental and Regenerative Biology Pre-Freshman Research Experience (NPRE) is an eight-week program offering high school seniors and incoming UTSA freshman STEM exposure. Students, financially supported by STEMSTART Enrichment, are hosted in UTSA laboratories and work directly with mentors on research projects for the duration of the program.

“We brought the idea to Dr. Jenny Hsieh, and she thought it was incredible,” Villalon said.

Now in its second summer, the program promotes the retention of students pursuing science degrees and contributes to the future generation of science professionals.

Each student works with a mentor and lab based on their interests and the topics they want to explore. Faculty mentors from the UTSA Department of Neuroscience, Developmental and Regenerative Biology include Brian Hermann, T. Chris Gamblin, John McCarrey, Lacy Barton, Marina Silveira, Fidel Santamaria, Lindsey Macpherson and Hsieh, who serves as the Semmes Foundation Distinguished Chair in Cell Biology.

Nine students took part in the program this summer and contributed toward research projects they will present on Friday, August 2. Among the students in the program is Fatima Majeed, an incoming UTSA freshman Villalon mentored.

“At the beginning of the program I wasn’t sure I could handle it and was intimidated by science. However, as time went on, I felt like the science and the work got easier because I had support from everyone in the lab,” Majeed said. “I recommend it to high school students because the labs are so supportive and will start slowly. It’s a great opportunity to make friends and get to know other students in the program before starting college.”

Fatima joined the McCarrey Lab for the summer to further explore her initial interest in science. Throughout the summer, she’s worked on validating primers, stretches of DNA sequences, for genes that will be studied in the future.

“The great part about this program is students get a different look at science other than what you see in a textbook. The goal is to have these students gain this experience. And by doing actual research, working with chemicals and being in a research lab, they get that perspective of biology before going into the classroom. The hope is that the biology will make more sense, the calculations will make more sense and the lecture portion of their courses will make more sense and ultimately aid in their retention as the continue their undergraduate academic tenure,” Villalon explained.

She added, “Every student we had in the program last year stayed in the research lab they worked in. These are the kinds of things we want to put in the hands of those students.”

— Ari Castañeda