The Jackson Laboratory (JAX) will receive $100,000 from The Arthur Vining Davis Foundations in support of "Teaching the Genome Generation," the Laboratory's innovative teacher professional development education program.
Launched last summer, "Teaching the Genome Generation" is geared at giving high school science and math teachers hands-on lab experience. This "teach the teachers" approach brings greater understanding of the basics of genomics--molecular biology techniques, use of genome databases, and social, ethical and legal issues--to public schools. Teachers can share the knowledge they gain in the course with their colleagues as well as their students.
"The future of healthcare, and healthcare jobs, will be genome-based," explains Charles Wray, Ph.D., director of JAX Courses and Conferences. "So we need to prepare young people for careers in this growing field, as well as for being knowledgeable healthcare consumers." Wray created and teaches the course together with genetics educator Dana Waring of Harvard Medical School and Mike McKernan, JAX STEM and undergraduate education program director.
This summer JAX will present "Teaching the Genome Generation" at its Bar Harbor, Maine, campus July 6-10 and at The Jackson Laboratory for Genomic Medicine in Farmington, Conn., July 13-17. Teachers can register for the courses at courses.jax.org (see "Upcoming Events").
The Jackson Laboratory offers educational programs for scientists throughout their careers--from high school students and teachers to experienced researchers defining the cutting edge of genomics research and physicians interested in incorporating genetics and genomics into their practices.
The Arthur Vining Davis Foundations, based in Jacksonville, Fla., is a national philanthropic organization established through the generosity of the late American industrialist, Arthur Vining Davis.
The Jackson Laboratory is an independent, nonprofit biomedical research institution and National Cancer Institute-designated Cancer Center. It employs 1,700 staff, and its mission is to discover precise genomic solutions for disease and empower the global biomedical community in the shared quest to improve human health.
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