Nadia Denis, a senior at the University of Miami who previously studied at Miami-Dade Community College, discusses her research at a "poster session" of a national scientific meeting.

Many research universities that want to broaden their student bodies need to look no farther than the local community college, which students attend because tuition is lower, hours are more flexible, and commuting is more convenient. But the space that separates the two institutions is often more than geographical.

The University of Miami is showing how to bridge this gulf, especially when it comes to attracting diverse students to the sciences. It has established a bridge program that enables talented Miami-Dade Community College students to carry out scientific research at the University of Miami. If they do well, the students can enroll at the university and complete their junior and senior years there tuition-free. Those who have participated in the program to date have transferred to four-year institutions and graduated at much higher rates than is typical at two-year colleges. See: http://www.hhmi.org/beyondbio101/comcol.htm.

With support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, other colleges and universities also have attracted talented students from community colleges. They include:

• The University of California — Davis, has a program that helps potential transfer students from community colleges to succeed in the life sciences through research opportunities and other forms of academic enrichment.

•  Oklahoma State University works closely with eight regional community colleges that send significant numbers of transfer students to degree programs in biology.

• At the University of Washington, where almost half of the biology majors receive their introduction to the subject at area community colleges, community college instructors work with university faculty to develop course standards and laboratory exercises for two-year biology students.