The STEM workforce is large and fast growing. However, underrepresented minorities remain poorly represented within the STEM workforce. This is partly due to the high attrition of underrepresented minorities in STEM majors. It has been shown by various studies that immersion in undergraduate research enhances the educational experience of science undergraduates and attracts and retains talented students to careers in science. However, access to these undergraduate research experiences are few and often limited to high performing students. Course based undergraduate research experiences (CUREs), that involves whole classes of students in addressing a research question or problem, have been show to increase students persistence in STEM. Therefore, this project seeks to 1) identify barriers to CUREs implementations and sustainability at Tuskegee University and 2) measure the impact of CUREs on students’ persistence in STEM.