Impact of Professional and Scientific Societies' Student Chapters on the Development of Underrepresented Undergraduate Students

Undergraduate students from historically underrepresented groups (URG) in institutions of higher education with a focus on science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) careers often lack the support, resources, and community necessary to succeed in their desired fields. Through mentoring, webinars, seminars, and various research presentation opportunities, national societies and "locally-based" institutional student chapters provide atmospheres in which URG undergraduates can develop the skills required for academic and professional careers in STEM. In addition, national societies and student chapters contribute to outreach activities aimed towards the public in order to foster interest in STEM, as well as to primary and secondary school students to help them develop competency in skills and areas that lead to successful STEM careers. While many of these societies have operated for decades, the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic proved to be an unexpected roadblock, creating difficulties in terms of maintaining community dynamics and overcoming limits on in-person meetings. Though the conditions were challenging, they allowed for new perspectives on problem-solving in the face of adversity. The pandemic promoted the development of creative ways by which institutions and national societies could continue to educate students virtually. In this review, we discuss the role of national societies and student chapters in providing URG students with resources and skills to succeed in STEM fields while incorporating them into a community of like-minded peers with similar experiences.

COVID-19 and public transport: An overview and recommendations applicable to Latin America

The article presents a general overview on COVID-19 transmission in the context of public transport, particularly applicable to decision making in Latin America. Based on recent findings on COVID-19 transmission and the relative importance of each factor (droplets, fomites, and aerosol routes) in such transmission, we seek to update the discussion on the topic that has generally been based on social distance as the only parameter for reducing the risk of transmission and broadens the vision to integrate ventilation, users' behavior (mask and eye protection use, silence while in the transport system) and travel distance. Recommendations to improve mobility conditions reducing the risk of COVID-19 contagion are provided. © 2021 Asociacion Colombiana de Infectologia. All rights reserved.