{"id":18590,"date":"2023-01-27T20:29:38","date_gmt":"2023-01-27T20:29:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/natsci.uprrp.edu\/ramp-up\/?page_id=18590"},"modified":"2025-07-10T14:47:47","modified_gmt":"2025-07-10T14:47:47","slug":"about","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/natsci.uprrp.edu\/ramp-up\/about\/","title":{"rendered":"About"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t<div data-elementor-type=\"wp-post\" data-elementor-id=\"18590\" class=\"elementor elementor-18590\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<section class=\"elementor-section elementor-top-section elementor-element elementor-element-92f62cf elementor-section-boxed elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default\" data-id=\"92f62cf\" data-element_type=\"section\" data-e-type=\"section\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-100 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-ce07241\" data-id=\"ce07241\" data-element_type=\"column\" data-e-type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-1e66c9f elementor-invisible elementor-widget elementor-widget-image\" data-id=\"1e66c9f\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-settings=\"{&quot;_animation&quot;:&quot;fadeInDown&quot;}\" data-widget_type=\"image.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"640\" height=\"309\" src=\"https:\/\/natsci.uprrp.edu\/ramp-up\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/26\/2023\/08\/RampUP_logo-removebg-preview.png\" class=\"attachment-large size-large wp-image-18798\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/natsci.uprrp.edu\/ramp-up\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/26\/2023\/08\/RampUP_logo-removebg-preview.png 676w, https:\/\/natsci.uprrp.edu\/ramp-up\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/26\/2023\/08\/RampUP_logo-removebg-preview-300x145.png 300w, https:\/\/natsci.uprrp.edu\/ramp-up\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/26\/2023\/08\/RampUP_logo-removebg-preview-18x9.png 18w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-165d8b7 elementor-widget elementor-widget-spacer\" data-id=\"165d8b7\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"spacer.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-spacer\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-spacer-inner\"><\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-b451f0c elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"b451f0c\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Background<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-e88115d elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"e88115d\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p class=\"p1\">In recent years, <strong>Puerto Rico <\/strong>and its <strong>public university system<\/strong>, the University of Puerto Rico (UPR) have received three assaults &#8211; devastating hurricanes that caused catastrophic damage and a humanitarian crisis, a series of earthquakes that caused havoc and destruction in the southern region and finally, the Covid pandemic. Their effects have been felt by the entire island population, however, one could argue that college undergraduates have been primarily impacted. While courses and other activities might have continued under harsh conditions, research and research training experiences for this group diminished substantially or completely vanished.\u00a0<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<section class=\"elementor-section elementor-inner-section elementor-element elementor-element-55a720b elementor-section-boxed elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default\" data-id=\"55a720b\" data-element_type=\"section\" data-e-type=\"section\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-50 elementor-inner-column elementor-element elementor-element-8e05537\" data-id=\"8e05537\" data-element_type=\"column\" data-e-type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-ee812de elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"ee812de\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p class=\"p1\">Because of these catastrophes, many students have completed (or are completing) their B.S. without the opportunity to engage in research and fully develop their research potentials to be better prepared for a career in STEM<span class=\"s12\">. At the UPR-R\u00edo Piedras Campus (UPR-RP), undergraduate research participation in <strong>biological research decreased 40%<\/strong>, as determined by registration in the &#8220;Introduction to Research&#8221; course where students get credits to do research with in-house mentors. Similarly, <strong>students in other states and territories<\/strong> are suffering from lack of research and professional development opportunities because of Covid- 19 and other climate-related catastrophes in their regions (fires in western states, hurricanes in the south and flooding in the northeast).\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-50 elementor-inner-column elementor-element elementor-element-d7a3069\" data-id=\"d7a3069\" data-element_type=\"column\" data-e-type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-302b0c5 animated-slow elementor-invisible elementor-widget elementor-widget-image\" data-id=\"302b0c5\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-settings=\"{&quot;_animation&quot;:&quot;fadeInRight&quot;}\" data-widget_type=\"image.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" width=\"640\" height=\"344\" src=\"https:\/\/natsci.uprrp.edu\/ramp-up\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/26\/2023\/08\/edificio-julio-garcia-diaz-1-e1693510932822-1024x551.jpeg\" class=\"attachment-large size-large wp-image-18790\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/natsci.uprrp.edu\/ramp-up\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/26\/2023\/08\/edificio-julio-garcia-diaz-1-e1693510932822-1024x551.jpeg 1024w, https:\/\/natsci.uprrp.edu\/ramp-up\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/26\/2023\/08\/edificio-julio-garcia-diaz-1-e1693510932822-300x161.jpeg 300w, https:\/\/natsci.uprrp.edu\/ramp-up\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/26\/2023\/08\/edificio-julio-garcia-diaz-1-e1693510932822-768x413.jpeg 768w, https:\/\/natsci.uprrp.edu\/ramp-up\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/26\/2023\/08\/edificio-julio-garcia-diaz-1-e1693510932822-1536x827.jpeg 1536w, https:\/\/natsci.uprrp.edu\/ramp-up\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/26\/2023\/08\/edificio-julio-garcia-diaz-1-e1693510932822-18x10.jpeg 18w, https:\/\/natsci.uprrp.edu\/ramp-up\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/26\/2023\/08\/edificio-julio-garcia-diaz-1-e1693510932822.jpeg 1600w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-9404622 elementor-widget elementor-widget-spacer\" data-id=\"9404622\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"spacer.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-spacer\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-spacer-inner\"><\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<section class=\"elementor-section elementor-top-section elementor-element elementor-element-75dd1b1 elementor-section-stretched elementor-section-boxed elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default\" data-id=\"75dd1b1\" data-element_type=\"section\" data-e-type=\"section\" data-settings=\"{&quot;stretch_section&quot;:&quot;section-stretched&quot;,&quot;background_background&quot;:&quot;classic&quot;,&quot;animation&quot;:&quot;none&quot;}\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-100 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-f350b17\" data-id=\"f350b17\" data-element_type=\"column\" data-e-type=\"column\" data-settings=\"{&quot;background_background&quot;:&quot;classic&quot;}\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<section class=\"elementor-section elementor-inner-section elementor-element elementor-element-2bcb1c3 elementor-section-boxed elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default elementor-invisible\" data-id=\"2bcb1c3\" data-element_type=\"section\" data-e-type=\"section\" data-settings=\"{&quot;animation&quot;:&quot;fadeIn&quot;}\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-100 elementor-inner-column elementor-element elementor-element-63d1bd3\" data-id=\"63d1bd3\" data-element_type=\"column\" data-e-type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-2c12433 elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"2c12433\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Research and Mentoring for Postbaccalaureates in Biological Sciences (RaMP-UP) <\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-1548833 elementor-widget__width-initial elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"1548833\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>RaMP-UP program at theUniversity of Puerto Rico aims to provide 30 students (10 student per year) with the opportunity to \u201ccatch-up\u201d and gain meaningful experiences in research and professional development within a supportive research environment. Achieving this goal will have a huge impact on the life of the trainees and consequently increase the number of students from historically underrepresented groups in science to continue STEM careers and integrate into the STEM workforce.<\/p><p>The program have assembled a group of researchers in biological and computational areas that are eager to provide research experience and direct mentoring to student participants. See the list of mentors and co-mentors\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/natsci.uprrp.edu\/ramp-up\/research-mentors\/\">here<\/a>.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-062c670 elementor-widget elementor-widget-spacer\" data-id=\"062c670\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"spacer.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-spacer\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-spacer-inner\"><\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<section class=\"elementor-section elementor-top-section elementor-element elementor-element-75cce92 elementor-section-boxed elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default\" data-id=\"75cce92\" data-element_type=\"section\" data-e-type=\"section\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-100 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-2db36c0\" data-id=\"2db36c0\" data-element_type=\"column\" data-e-type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-b3e75c2 elementor-widget elementor-widget-spacer\" data-id=\"b3e75c2\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"spacer.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-spacer\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-spacer-inner\"><\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<section class=\"elementor-section elementor-top-section elementor-element elementor-element-98951f8 elementor-section-boxed elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default\" data-id=\"98951f8\" data-element_type=\"section\" data-e-type=\"section\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-50 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-7502cb9\" data-id=\"7502cb9\" data-element_type=\"column\" data-e-type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-0ae2bd0 elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"0ae2bd0\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Mission<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-3729fa1 elementor-widget__width-initial elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"3729fa1\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>RaMP-UP Program aims to provide students that have completed their B.S. degrees with the opportunity to gain meaningful experiences in research and professional development within a supportive research environment.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-2828ffd elementor-widget elementor-widget-spacer\" data-id=\"2828ffd\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"spacer.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-spacer\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-spacer-inner\"><\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-abb66f7 animated-slow elementor-invisible elementor-widget elementor-widget-image\" data-id=\"abb66f7\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-settings=\"{&quot;_animation&quot;:&quot;fadeInLeft&quot;}\" data-widget_type=\"image.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" src=\"https:\/\/natsci.uprrp.edu\/ramp-up\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/26\/2025\/03\/IMG_9480-1024x768.jpg\" class=\"attachment-large size-large wp-image-19521\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/natsci.uprrp.edu\/ramp-up\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/26\/2025\/03\/IMG_9480-1024x768.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/natsci.uprrp.edu\/ramp-up\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/26\/2025\/03\/IMG_9480-300x225.jpg 300w, https:\/\/natsci.uprrp.edu\/ramp-up\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/26\/2025\/03\/IMG_9480-768x576.jpg 768w, https:\/\/natsci.uprrp.edu\/ramp-up\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/26\/2025\/03\/IMG_9480-1536x1152.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/natsci.uprrp.edu\/ramp-up\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/26\/2025\/03\/IMG_9480-2048x1536.jpg 2048w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-50 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-499be69\" data-id=\"499be69\" data-element_type=\"column\" data-e-type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-6eecbf5 elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"6eecbf5\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Vision<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-c041ae3 elementor-widget__width-initial elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"c041ae3\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>A huge impact on the life of the trainees and consequently increase the number of students from historically underrepresented groups in science to continue STEM careers and integrate into the STEM workforce.<br><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-305c86a elementor-widget elementor-widget-spacer\" data-id=\"305c86a\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"spacer.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-spacer\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-spacer-inner\"><\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-cb296a5 elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"cb296a5\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Objectives<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-1f0a1f4 elementor-widget__width-initial elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"1f0a1f4\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<ul>\n<li>Attract recent graduates in Biology and related STEM disciplines to perform interdisciplinary biological research.<\/li>\n<li>Provide students with a \u201chands-on\u201d in depth research experience.<\/li>\n<li>Present a series of activities aimed at developing participants\u2019 research skills and professional tools needed to succeed in future STEM careers.<\/li>\n<li>RaMP-UP scholars acquire the necessary knowledge, mentoring and skills to successfully continue their education toward MS or PhD degrees in STEM fields, or other research-related STEM career pathways.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<section class=\"elementor-section elementor-top-section elementor-element elementor-element-40a4b97 elementor-section-boxed elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default\" data-id=\"40a4b97\" data-element_type=\"section\" data-e-type=\"section\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-100 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-6cc610c\" data-id=\"6cc610c\" data-element_type=\"column\" data-e-type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-595278b elementor-widget elementor-widget-spacer\" data-id=\"595278b\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"spacer.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-spacer\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-spacer-inner\"><\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<section class=\"elementor-section elementor-top-section elementor-element elementor-element-d292a94 elementor-section-stretched elementor-section-boxed elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default\" data-id=\"d292a94\" data-element_type=\"section\" data-e-type=\"section\" data-settings=\"{&quot;stretch_section&quot;:&quot;section-stretched&quot;,&quot;background_background&quot;:&quot;classic&quot;}\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-100 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-60f3f85 elementor-invisible\" data-id=\"60f3f85\" data-element_type=\"column\" data-e-type=\"column\" data-settings=\"{&quot;animation&quot;:&quot;fadeIn&quot;,&quot;background_background&quot;:&quot;classic&quot;}\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<section class=\"elementor-section elementor-inner-section elementor-element elementor-element-8bf4846 elementor-section-boxed elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default\" data-id=\"8bf4846\" data-element_type=\"section\" data-e-type=\"section\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-50 elementor-inner-column elementor-element elementor-element-ab24e0a\" data-id=\"ab24e0a\" data-element_type=\"column\" data-e-type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-5ec2eac elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"5ec2eac\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">We have established a network that includes<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-7bc9b84 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"7bc9b84\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<ul>\n<li>Faculty contacts in primary teaching universities that will promote our program and serve as liaison between the program and prospective candidates.&nbsp;<\/li>\n<li>Mainland institutions interested in recruiting promising students to their graduate programs.&nbsp;<\/li><li>A group of active researchers in biological areas eager to provide research experience and direct mentoring to student participants.<\/li><li>Additional investigators from other natural sciences department that will serve as co-mentors.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-50 elementor-inner-column elementor-element elementor-element-15aea05\" data-id=\"15aea05\" data-element_type=\"column\" data-e-type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-fbdcefc animated-slow elementor-invisible elementor-widget elementor-widget-image\" data-id=\"fbdcefc\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-settings=\"{&quot;_animation&quot;:&quot;fadeInRight&quot;}\" data-widget_type=\"image.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"640\" height=\"436\" src=\"https:\/\/natsci.uprrp.edu\/ramp-up\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/26\/2025\/03\/IMG_0363-scaled-e1752158635714-1024x698.jpg\" class=\"attachment-large size-large wp-image-19582\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/natsci.uprrp.edu\/ramp-up\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/26\/2025\/03\/IMG_0363-scaled-e1752158635714-1024x698.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/natsci.uprrp.edu\/ramp-up\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/26\/2025\/03\/IMG_0363-scaled-e1752158635714-300x204.jpg 300w, https:\/\/natsci.uprrp.edu\/ramp-up\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/26\/2025\/03\/IMG_0363-scaled-e1752158635714-768x523.jpg 768w, https:\/\/natsci.uprrp.edu\/ramp-up\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/26\/2025\/03\/IMG_0363-scaled-e1752158635714-1536x1047.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/natsci.uprrp.edu\/ramp-up\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/26\/2025\/03\/IMG_0363-scaled-e1752158635714.jpg 1740w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<section class=\"elementor-section elementor-top-section elementor-element elementor-element-35fae9c elementor-section-boxed elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default\" data-id=\"35fae9c\" data-element_type=\"section\" data-e-type=\"section\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-100 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-0aaa0b1\" data-id=\"0aaa0b1\" data-element_type=\"column\" data-e-type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-51c48ac elementor-widget elementor-widget-spacer\" data-id=\"51c48ac\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"spacer.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-spacer\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-spacer-inner\"><\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-7bbc3c3 elementor-align-center animated-slow elementor-invisible elementor-widget elementor-widget-button\" data-id=\"7bbc3c3\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-settings=\"{&quot;_animation&quot;:&quot;zoomIn&quot;}\" data-widget_type=\"button.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-button-wrapper\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<a class=\"elementor-button elementor-button-link elementor-size-sm\" href=\"https:\/\/natsci.uprrp.edu\/ramp-up\/apply-online-today\/\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"elementor-button-content-wrapper\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"elementor-button-text\">Contact Us for more information<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-72b32c3 elementor-widget elementor-widget-spacer\" data-id=\"72b32c3\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"spacer.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-spacer\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-spacer-inner\"><\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Background In recent years, Puerto Rico and its public university system, the University of Puerto Rico (UPR) have received three assaults &#8211; devastating hurricanes that caused catastrophic damage and a humanitarian crisis, a series of earthquakes that caused havoc and &hellip; <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":58,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-18590","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/natsci.uprrp.edu\/ramp-up\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/18590","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/natsci.uprrp.edu\/ramp-up\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/natsci.uprrp.edu\/ramp-up\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/natsci.uprrp.edu\/ramp-up\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/58"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/natsci.uprrp.edu\/ramp-up\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=18590"}],"version-history":[{"count":59,"href":"https:\/\/natsci.uprrp.edu\/ramp-up\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/18590\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":20242,"href":"https:\/\/natsci.uprrp.edu\/ramp-up\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/18590\/revisions\/20242"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/natsci.uprrp.edu\/ramp-up\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=18590"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}