CU Anschutz launches START summer camp

CU Anschutz Cancer Center has launched START, a summer program designed to bring students and teachers onto its Aurora campus for hands-on cancer research exposure, the university said on August 3. The program’s full name is Students and Teachers Achieving Cancer Research Experiences Together. CU Anschutz said the effort is backed by a five-year grant from the National Cancer Institute. Becker’s Oncology reported the launch on August 5, citing the university’s release. The program adds to a set of K-12 and trainee pipeline efforts at the cancer center, which is part of the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus. CU Anschutz said START is intended to help students see cancer research as a possible career path and to give teachers material they can bring back to their classrooms. A separate university page shows START offerings for middle-school students in summer 2026 and describes the camp as free. (news.cuanschutz.edu) ### Who is START meant to reach? CU Anschutz said START is aimed at both students and teachers, not only one group. The university said the model brings teachers into curriculum development and then brings teachers and students onto campus for an immersive summer research experience. The START program page lists 2026 summer science camp sessions for students entering seventh and eighth grade in fall 2026. (news.cuanschutz.edu) That page says the camp runs July 13-17 on the University of Colorado Anschutz campus, from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. daily, with lunch provided at no cost. ### What do participants actually do on campus? (news.cuanschutz.edu) The CU Anschutz program page says students take part in science activities, lab exploration, interactive discussions, lab tours and team-building games. The seventh-grade description says participants learn what cancer is, how the research process works and what future pathways exist in cancer research. The eighth-grade description says students keep lab notebooks, observe fundamental lab practices and learn about cancer in Colorado and research underway at CU Anschutz. (medschool.cuanschutz.edu) Mark Harden, writing for CU Anschutz News, said the program gives teenagers a chance to learn directly about cancer research during the summer. The university described the effort as part of its cancer center education and outreach work. ### Why are teachers part of the model? CU Anschutz said teacher participation is central to the design. In a 2021 university article about the program, Nia Davila said, “What’s novel about this program is that we’re bringing in the teachers to develop new curricula for their students so they can introduce them to cancer research in the classroom.” (news.cuanschutz.edu) (medschool.cuanschutz.edu) That structure means the program extends beyond a one-week camp. The university said teachers can take what they build at Anschutz back to their own schools, while students get direct exposure to research settings and cancer scientists. ### How does START fit into CU Anschutz’s broader training pipeline? The University of Colorado Cancer Center has run other education programs tied to cancer research training, including Learn About Cancer Day and undergraduate summer fellowships, according to university pages. (news.cuanschutz.edu) In August 2025, CU Anschutz also announced a separate National Cancer Institute-funded youth mentoring effort aimed at neighborhoods around the medical campus. The cancer center’s student-news archive shows continuing emphasis on trainee and student programs across age groups. That includes K-12 outreach, undergraduate research experiences and teacher training events run through its Cancer Research Training and Education Coordination office. ### Where can families and educators find the next step? The CU Anschutz START program page is the main public source for camp dates, eligibility and application details. (news.cuanschutz.edu) That page listed February 15, 2026, as the application deadline for the 2026 seventh- and eighth-grade sessions and said the camps were held on the Aurora campus in July. (news.cuanschutz.edu) CU Anschutz has not publicly posted 2027 START dates in the sources reviewed, but the cancer center and program pages remain the place where future sessions and application materials would appear. (medschool.cuanschutz.edu)