WASHINGTON, March 16, 2020 — The American Chemical Society (ACS) has received a $3.015 million grant from the Genentech Foundation to support the ACS Bridge Project through 2023. The project aims to boost the fraction of students from underrepresented minority groups earning chemistry-related Ph.D.s to match the fraction of those in these groups who currently receive bachelor’s degrees in the field.

The Genentech Foundation’s grant will support new ACS Bridge Fellows, students from underrepresented groups pursuing advanced degrees in chemical sciences, and ACS Bridge Sites, university departments that have demonstrated a commitment to diversity and inclusion. It will also fund new resources for the project, including professional development boot camps for undergraduate students and career workshops and conferences for graduate students and postdocs. In addition, the grant will support a new online learning and networking platform and a full-time postdoctoral researcher who will help ACS evaluate the project.
 

These resources will help ACS develop, document and share sustainable practices that improve access to graduate education for all students, especially those in groups that are underrepresented in chemical science doctoral programs.
 

Launched in 2018 with a $2.3 million grant from the National Science Foundation, the ACS Bridge Project is part of the Inclusive Graduate Education Network, a national alliance of five scientific societies aimed at increasing participation of women and underrepresented minorities in graduate education in the physical sciences. The alliance is being led by the American Physical Society and includes the American Geophysical Union, the American Astronomical Society and the Materials Research Society, as well as ACS.