A unique feature of the Duke Summer Training in Academic Research (STAR) program is its focus on mentorship. STAR is an opportunity for junior faculty members and fellows to learn how to be mentors, and for undergraduate and high school students to learn how to be mentored. These are important and fundamental points; mentorship, from the perspective of mentor or mentee, should be a deliberate and skilled activity that can result from adequate training.

The DCRI Pediatrics group designed a summer internship program that had a wide reach and reflects its purpose and mission to conduct research to help children everywhere. This led to the creation of the Duke STAR (Summer Training in Academic Research) Program, a program that provides ~20 high school or college students per summer the opportunity to be exposed to clinical research and to work closely with researchers and practicing clinicians. Recruiting efforts prioritized participants from historically marginalized communities in North Carolina, with a goal to include at least several students each year who were “hidden talent.”