An award has been made to Humboldt State University (HSU) to establish a URM program to engage under-represented minority students in a research and mentoring program to prepare them for graduate study in the biological sciences. A cohort consisting of six students will be recruited each year in the first four years of the grant, and NSF funds will be used to support each undergraduate participant for a total of two calendar years. Over the 5-year period of the grant, a total of twenty four (24) students will be trained in the program. Most students will begin in the program at the start of their sophomore year. The program will primarily recruit Native American and Latino/a students with the goals of increasing the number of students from these groups who graduate from HSU in the biologically-related sciences and facilitating their transition into graduate programs. Students will enter the program during the summer and will engage in a series of three rotations to explore various research projects and meet potential research mentors.  During their first fall semester in the program, the students will enroll in a Research Methods Course that will cover topics in scientific method, study design, proposal preparation, scientific writing and presentation.  During this course, each student will develop a detailed research proposal for a project that they will pursue for the remainder of the program.  Student research will be individually mentored by one of at least sixteen faculty derived from seven departments in HSU’s College of Natural Resources and Sciences. The research areas of the faculty are grouped into three themes: 1) Ecology and Evolution, 2) Physiology, Cell and Molecular Biology, and 3) Natural Resource Management. The HSU URM program will offer students in the program a variety of courses, seminars, workshops, presentations, and activities that will provide them the foundation and structure to succeed. More information is available by contacting the Program Director, Dr. Bruce A. O’Gara, at bao3@humboldt.edu, or by visiting the program website at http://www.humboldt.edu/~urm/.