Vanderbilt is poised to become the leading producer of minority physics Ph.D.s in the country in a field that, on average, produces only one minority Ph.D. every nine years.

This new No. 1 rank is due to the success of a recently established Vanderbilt-Fisk Ph.D. Bridge program that has attracted 31 students since its start in 2004, 29 of which are underrepresented minority students.

"(The program) gives us a leadership role ... that really allows us to stand out ... because we have solved a really tough problem that none of our peer institutions have been able to do," said Vanderbilt Associate Professor of Physics and Astronomy Keivan Stassun, a director of the program.

The bridge program allows students to complete their master's degrees in physics, chemistry, biology or engineering at Fisk University and then track into the Vanderbilt Ph.D. program. While completing a master's at Fisk, students have the opportunity to take classes and do research at Vanderbilt.

"When the time comes to apply to the Ph.D. program, the faculty knows the candidate ... there is a kind of advantage built in," Stassun said.

Stassun said the idea for the program started about five years ago with the realization of Fisk's proximity to Vanderbilt.

"We have a leading research university with a strong Ph.D. program, and right next door we have a historically black university with a just as long tradition of excellence," Stassun said.

According to Stassun, in 2010, when the first students complete the bridge program, Vanderbilt will become the No. 1 producer of physics Ph.D.s for minority students.

According to the Bridge Program Web site, in 2006 a total of 12 black U.S. citizens were awarded with Ph.D.s in physics out of a total of 637 U.S. citizens.

"By participating and succeeding in this bridge program, I feel that I am sending a message to other minorities that it is possible to do science, to be part of the great modern scientific discoveries," said participant Tommy Le Blanc.