STEP-UP High School Students Present Research Projects at National Institutes of Health Symposium

(From left) Dr. Paul Dacanay, Yvonne Johnny, Director of STEP-UP Program NIDDK/NIH Dr. Lawrence Agodoa, Erika Billen, and Pacific STEP-UP Director Dr. George Hui.

(Bethesda, Maryland) – Two High School students under the Short-Term Research Experience for Underrepresented Persons (STEP-UP) program presented research projects at the National STEP-UP Summer Research Symposium at Natcher Conference Center, National Institutes of Health (NIH) in Bethesda, Maryland from August 11 – 15 2013.

Erika Billen of Pohnpei Island Central School (PICS) and Yvonne Johnny of Nanpei Memorial High School (NMHS) presented their research projects and participated in the Poster Presentation. This would Ms. Johnny's second time to come to the symposium.

Both students are now enrolled at the college's National Campus.

These students worked on their research over the summer with the help of their mentors headed by Dr. Paul Dacanay at College of Micronesia-FSM.

According to Dr. Dacanany Erika and Yvone were very calm and composed during their presentation. Both students impressed the panel of judges assigned to their group by responding to all their questions and inquiries very well.

The National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Disease’s STEP-UP program is designed to provide short-term research education for high school students from racial and ethnic minority or disadvantage backgrounds to expose them to research within the mission areas of NIDDK.

The COM-FSM STEP-UP program is under the University of Hawaii Pacific STEP-UP Program headed by Program Director George Hui, PhD. The FSM Regional Coordinators for FSM are Mariana Ben-Dereas, Vice President for Instructional Affairs, COM-FSM and Paul Dacanay, MD, Division Chair for Health Sciences at COM-FSM.