Latinx High School Students’ Reflections About a University Summer Research Program Support the Use of Asset Bundles in Designing Programs for Broadening STEM Pipelines

Latinx individuals are under-represented in STEM and biomedical fields. Research by Johnson and Bozeman has shown that the asset bundle framework can be used to help minoritized individuals succeed in STEM and professional schools. This model has been widely applied to college students, but little work has been done with high school students. A formalized summer research program to allow students to participate in university research was implemented that is geared toward underrepresented high school students at predominantly Latinx high schools in the Southwest using the asset bundle framework. Over the last two years, 10 students have participated in a 4 to 5-week summer research program. Seven of these ten students were interviewed about their experiences in the program. Data were analyzed using a grounded theory approach. Themes from the asset bundles framework emerged in these interviews that were indicative of student interest in biomedical pursuits, suggesting that asset bundles can be used to promote biomedical careers among Latinx high school students.