Our Eighteen YearHistory
Increasing educational and career opportunities for promising Native American students
The Four Directions Summer Research Program (FDSRP) was created by Native American students attending Harvard Medical School (HMS). These students shared a common vision of increasing educational and career opportunities for promising Native American students. With the help of a few devoted medical school faculty, the program was launched in 1994 with the successful enrollment of 6 students for the first summer. We are now entering our 18th year, and have brought nearly 150 students to HMS during this time.
Our previous participants say:
“Four Directions provided an amazing array of career resources such as shadowing physicians, physician speakers, and hands-on science research experience. I had the opportunity to fully immerse myself into the field of medicine and research and meet many great people along the way. I had a better understanding of the medicine, and now can make a well prepared decision about my career.”
“The FDSRP allowed me to meet other talented, focused Native American students. I still keep in touch with fellow alumni 10 years later!”
“This program opened my eyes to research in a big way. The hands-on experience and mentorship you will receive with FDSRP will be beneficial for years to come.”
Alumni SPOTLIGHT
Rodney C. Haring, PhD, LMSW – FDSRP 1995
For Rodney C. Haring, FDSRP was a stone in the foundation of his career and helped to shape him into the professional he is today. Offered the opportunity to shadow clinicians in many different areas of the health care field while in Boston, Rodney discovered his true calling as a social worker. The support of his mentors at FDSRP was integral to his academic progression, eventually leading him to become the first ever Haudenosaunee doctorate level social worker in the history of the Seneca Nation of Indians.
Rodney was born and raised on the Cattaraugus Indian Reservation of the Seneca Nation of Indians, where it was always his goal to work with his community. “The program was crucial in my development not only as a student but as a Native person navigating in two worlds: life on the reservation and how that interplayed with academics and scientific research,” says Rodney. “FDSRP gave me support, guidance, and most of all confidence.”
After completing the program, Rodney transferred to the State University of New York at Stony Brook and earned a dual degree in psychology and social interdisciplinary studies. He then attended the State University of New York at Buffalo School of Social Work, where he received both a masters and a doctoral degree.
Rodney returned home where he established the first social work private practice on Seneca Territories and the first 100% American Indian owned, nationwide provider of Employee Assistance Program (EAP) services. His firm, One Feather Consulting, works with tribes across North America as an EAP, as well as providing various consulting services including market research, organizational development, social impact studies, and program evaluation services.