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Benjamin notes that by hosting students from diverse cultures, LSAMP-NICE
mentors will end up training people who can translate and articulate the impact
of their work to broader populations. Anecdotally, the public has more trust in
scientific messages delivered by someone who looks like them, speaks like
them, or has a shared background with them.Expanding horizons with new partners/directions
With its established partners in France, Saudi Arabia, and South Africa,
LSAMP-NICE is moving toward the next phase of its development, exploring
the possibility of having joint graduate programs in which students would
spend roughly half their time abroad and receive either a Master’s degree
or a Ph.D. from both their home U.S. university and their international host
university.
LSAMP-NICE is also adding more international partners that will sponsor
student exchanges, including the Brazilian and Panamanian Embassies in
Washington, D.C., the Brazilian Research Foundation FAPESP (Fundação de
Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo), and the Panamanian Research
Foundation SENACYT (La Secretaría Nacional de Ciencia, Tecnología e
Innovación de la República de Panamá).
“It’s crucial to keep expanding our network to make sure we have additional
opportunities for our students—one country may not fit everyone’s needs,”
says Flores. There are rich opportunities for research, education, and cultural
exchanges in neighboring regions to the south of the United States, he says.
“Reaching out to our partners in Central and South America is really serving all
of the Americas’ needs.”Maharaj says that the partnership between South Africa’s NRF and
LSAMP-NICE grew out of their aligned aspiration for graduate students to have
international research exposure.
“Research and innovation are disciplines where excellence is defined by
what your global peers perceive excellence to be,” she says. NRF, which is
akin to the U.S. NSF, aligns with the LSAMP philosophy in other key ways, too.
“Given our history in South Africa of [racial segregation and transformation],
we resonate with the U.S. program—bringing in previously disadvantaged
individuals is paramount in transforming both of our research cohorts.”
Her colleague Sepo Hachigonta, director of strategic partnerships at NRF,
says partnerships like those with LSAMP-NICE also fulfill NRF’s mandate to
train students. NRF encourages the Ph.D. students they fund to spend 3–
months outside of South Africa. He says they are eager to tap into the vast
LSAMP network of universities to find placements for their students in the
United States.
Again he emphasizes that these are values where the two partners are
perfectly aligned: “If you want to fund the best students or become the best in
innovation, you cannot do it in isolation.”Sponsored byJoshua Ames (left) and Jason Garcia (right) presented their graduate work at Stellenbosch University, South Africa; Deisy Carvalho Fernandes (center) spent 6 months doing her doctoral disseration
research at the University of Bordeaux, France.PHOTOS: COURTESY OF LSAMP0408Product.indd 115 3/31/22 8:47 AM