By admin 
TUCSON, Ariz. (13 News) – The University of Arizona’s KEYS Research Program marked its 20th anniversary Friday, placing dozens of high school students alongside university mentors for a free, seven-week science research experience.
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Around 500 students from across the state applied to the program this year. Only 58 were accepted.
Students take on college-level research
Fatima Al Zubaidi, a rising senior at University High School, was among those selected. She spent the summer studying a common type of bone cancer.
“You want to be better than someone, or you just want to set yourself apart from other kids — what can make me unique, especially in the competitive environment we have these days, especially because we’re going to apply to college very soon,” Al Zubaidi said.
She said the program also taught her lessons beyond the lab.
“Research is not perfect, no one is perfect, so you just have to learn to embrace those mistakes and move on,” Al Zubaidi said.
Mentors include program alumni
Students work with mentors throughout the program. Al Zubaidi’s mentor, Mozani Zianti, completed the KEYS program himself as a high school student.
“This is a point where a student may decide whether to pursue research or not, and so it’s very important that they’re introduced to that in a good way,” Zianti said.
KEYS — which stands for Keep Engaging Youth in Science — is free to participants. This year, for the first time since the pandemic, the University of Arizona secured funding that allowed students traveling from further away to stay in campus dormitories.
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Dr. Lisa Elfring, the program’s faculty of record, said the goal is to shift how students see themselves.
“It’s more important than ever for students to be able to see themselves as scientists and really experience that process of learning to ask questions in the scientific way,” Dr. Elfring said.
Zianti reflected on the program’s impact over two decades.
“I only pray that I am in more positions to give back to the program that was the start of my — my life,” Zianti said.
Applications for next year’s KEYS Research cohort are due in December.
Isabela Lisco is a Report for America corpsmember covering education solutions for 13 News. Her position is made possible through funding from Report for America and the Arizona Local News Foundation’s Arizona Community Collaborative Fund.
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