Creating Pathways and Access for Student Success Foundation™
We aim to increase underrepresented Illinois students in major healthcare and related STEM professions by providing the strongest educational foundation and access to resources.
Our Programs
SMASH Illinois
SMASH Illinois is a FREE three-year STEM-intensive residential college prep program for underrepresented high school students of color from the Chicago Metropolitan Area, Carbondale, and the East St. Louis Metro Area.
CPASS Mini-Medical Schools
Fourth and fifth grade students perform cool experiments and learn about the body and its systems in Rush Mini-Medical School.
MAPSCorps
High school students in MAPSCorps use smartphones to produce high-quality data that will improve healthcare and wellbeing in their community.
Use our search tool to find STEM programs near you in the areas that you’re interested in.
STEM Education
Study Tips for STEM Students [Guide]
What Our Alumni Say
Eric Whitaker, MD, MPH
Chair, CPASS Foundation
“Until CAHMCP, I was not supported in my dream of becoming a doctor. It was an eye-opening experience to be with students of color who all valued education.”
Laura Lucero, MD
Family Practice/Chief Medical Officer, Beloved Community Family Wellness Center
“I’ve never studied so hard, tried so hard. I was in that anatomy course all day long. I finally got into medical school a year later.”
Mildred M. G. Olivier, MD
Professor of Ophthalmology and Assistant Dean for Diversity and Learning Environment, Chicago Medical School of Rosalind Franklin University of Medicine and Science
“CAHMCP gave me a group of friends I studied with in medical school, and we tried to be the best that we could be.”
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News & Events
Welcome Tracie Screven as Associate Director for the CPASS Foundation
Tracie Screven is an adept technical professional with exceptional project management and strategy experience. In previous years, Tracie held various roles in Research and Development at Kraft Heinz for over 16 years. And most recently she held roles at SMASH as Site...
Illinois’s Future Depends on STEM Careers That Include Everyone
To grow a diverse workforce and address inequality Chicago companies need to innovate with STEM hiring and promotion. The Illinois STEM workforce is the sixth-largest in the US and growing fast. With an innovative job market and strong universities, students come to...
EVENTS
CPASS Foundation presents a fireside chat with Dr. Michael Eric Dyson
A fireside chat and live Q&A moderated by Dr. Michael Eric Dyson focusing on the lack of representation of Black males in medical schools.
Pre-Med Advice for College Freshmen
Are you considering a pre-med track? Join us for a presentation about medical school and speak with members of our staff about your goals and concerns. This event begins at 10 a.m. with refreshments; the presentation starts at 11 a.m. Dates: March 23, 201911 a.m....
The Blog
Robotics Is Surging in Chicagoland
The pandemic accelerated development of artificial intelligence and automation. Now students as young as pre-K are learning to code. The pandemic forced laboratories, factories, and warehouses around the world to replace humans with robots. As the world reopens,...
Experimenting with experiments during lockdown changed science education
Between COVID vaccines and mass lockdowns, humanity just experienced some of the largest medical and health experiments ever. This made it harder for STEM students to continue their own studies and transformed STEM university education. From accessing cadavers for...
Social Media Doctors
These doctors are here to teach everybody, on several platforms. Americans spend at least four hours a day looking at their phones. In 2020, 59 percent of American internet users looked online for health information. Social media is an efficient way to reach diverse,...