The recently awarded NIH Program, Addiction Scientists Strengthened through Education and Training (ASSET), is a five-year initiative awarded by the National Institute on Drug Abuse to SDSU. The overall goal of the program is to achieve diversity in substance use research and addiction science, also ultimately to promote diversity in the upper echelons of academia. Drs. Eileen Pitpitan and María Luisa Zúñiga designed the ASSET Program to provide junior investigators with underrepresented minority backgrounds (e.g., racial/ethnic minorities) with research knowledge, skills, and mentored career development training that will build their long-term confidence and resilience to become independent researchers and leaders in the field of substance use and addiction science. ASSET will also help to improve long-term scientific engagement of ethnically and racially diverse addiction scientists to meet the growing U.S. need for effective prevention and treatment of substance use disorders. Scholars in the program will benefit from the participation and mentorship of over 20 experienced and diverse faculty members from both SDSU and UCSD and will also benefit from the wealth of existing programs and resources from both universities.
