WF LEAP offers these students a unique opportunity to gain hands-on lab research experience while earning a paid internship. The goal is to increase the number of traditionally underrepresented youth and minorities in the STEM education pipeline. The program pairs each student with a Wake Forest professor and a co-mentor, who guide them through the foundations of their discipline and research. Over six weeks, from June 17 to July 26, students work on individual projects ranging from cancer cell responses to water treatment technology to improving muscle mass for older adults.