The UAB Department of Surgery's Pre-College Research Internship for Students from Minority Backgrounds (PRISM) and Surgery Undergraduate Research Experience (SURE) programs have announced summer participants for 2023.

PRISM Program

Promising high school students interested in healthcare careers are provided with unique hands-on experiences under the mentorship of UAB surgeons in the PRISM summer program.

Students will participate in research projects, seminars and workshops, and supplemental activities, including clinical shadowing to expose students to clinical practice in surgery.

PRISM participants include:

• Ariyan Elyse Riggs (George Washington Carver High School)
• Joshua Jennings (Evangel Christian School)
• Marisol Alvardo Resendiz (Thompson High School)
• Luis Adan Pineda Ventura (Chelsea High School)
• Prudence Wairimu Wachira (Vestavia Hills High School)

“Each year, we have great students who are curious about the field of medicine. With mentors from the Department of Surgery, they’ll get hands-on learning and experience working under surgeons and their peers,” said PRISM Program Co-Director Colin Martin, M.D., FACS.

SURE Program

The SURE summer program provides undergraduate students interested in a medical career with research experience that increases their competitiveness for admission to medical school and encourages them to consider careers in academic medicine, particularly the field of surgery.

SURE participants include:

• Mario Robledo (Troy University)
• Sarah Fu (University of Alabama at Birmingham)
• Raven Horn (Columbia University)
• Evan Johnson (University of Georgia)
• John Prophitt (Rhodes College)
• Sean O'Hare (Auburn University)
• Daisy Torres (Belmont University)
• Carla Aleman (Emory University)

"This is an experience like no other for undergraduate students. They get to work on research projects ranging from clinical to translational research with the outstanding surgical faculty at UAB,” said SURE Program Co-Director Karin Hardiman, M.D., Ph.D.