A program funded by the National Science Foundation's (NSF) "Partnership for Research and Education in Biomaterials" (PREM), UNM partners with Albuquerque Public Schools (APS), Southwestern Indian Polytechnical Institute (SIPI) and Harvard University. This 5-year, $2.5 million effort is intended to increase the participation of minorities and females in materials science-related careers, and to stimulate general interest in science and technology. UNM's PREM-affiliated students and faculty conduct collaborative research with researchers at the NSF-funded Harvard University Materials Research Science and Engineering Center (MRSEC). Important features of these collaborations are the opportunities for PREM participants to work at Harvard for periods of weeks or months. Students for the PREM program are recruited from UNM, SIPI and APS. PREM faculty bring hands-on biomaterials activities to APS classrooms, and they enable high school students to work in UNM's labs as summer research interns.