The Building Infrastructure Leading to Diversity (BUILD) Initiative is part of the Diversity Program Consortium established by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) as a 10-year national collaborative to develop, implement, and evaluate innovative approaches to research training and mentoring, with the goal of promoting diversity in the biomedical research workforce.

In 2014, California State University, Long Beach (CSULB) was one of the ten universities across the United States to receive a BUILD award (2014-2024). CSULB is a large, urban, comprehensive university in the California State University system — the largest public university system in the United States.  Among the 22 CSU campuses, CSULB is one of the largest and one of seven that have earned the R2 classification for high research activity by the Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education.

The CSULB BUILD Program takes a multifaceted approach to developing and strengthening a sustainable pipeline of biomedical researchers by expanding access and providing rigorous research and skills training to diverse undergraduate students. As one of the largest BUILD sites, the Program engaged students and faculty in health-related disciplines across four colleges: Engineering, Health and Human Services, Liberal Arts, and Natural Sciences and Mathematics.

Over the past decade, with $40 million in funding, the CSULB BUILD Program has made several long-lasting impacts on the campus and the community. The BUILD Student Training programs supported more than 400 undergraduate students; over 200 have matriculated into graduate schools, and 25 have earned doctoral degrees. The Program also enhanced campus research capacity and infrastructure by supporting faculty research and professional development through innovative initiatives such as Advancing Inclusive Mentoring and the Pre-Professor Program. These initiatives have since been institutionalized at CSULB and adopted by other institutions, further extending their impact.

This presentation will provide an overview of the CSULB BUILD Program, highlighting key activities and outcomes, best practices and lessons learned, and resources that can be adapted for implementation at other institutions.

Dr. Panadda (Nim) Marayong is a Professor and Associate Chair in the Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering at California State University, Long Beach (CSULB). She is also the Director of the Robotics and Interactive Systems Engineering (RISE) Laboratory and Co-Director of the BeachCAVE Virtual Reality Lab at CSULB. She earned her B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from Florida Institute of Technology and M.S. and Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering from Johns Hopkins University. Her primary research interests are in robotics, haptics, and the design of human–machine cooperative systems. During her tenure at CSULB, Dr. Marayong has secured more than $25 million in grant funding as a PI/Co-PI from NSF, NIH, and NASA. She served as Director of the Research Enrichment Core and as one of the PIs of the NIH-funded CSULB BUILD II Award. In addition to her teaching and scholarly work, she coordinates several outreach programs to promote STEM education among K–12 students. She is the recipient of the 2012 CSULB President’s Commission on the Status of Women Advancement of Women Faculty Award, the 2019 Orange County Engineering Council’s Distinguished and Pioneer Educator Award, and the 2023 CSULB President’s Award for Outstanding Faculty Achievement. Dr. Marayong is a member of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) and the American Society for Engineering Education (ASEE), where she has served as Chair of the ASEE Pacific Southwest Section and as a member of its Executive Board.