Does HudsonAlpha offer summer internships and college courses?
Educational Outreach at HudsonAlpha offers many opportunities for high school and college students seeking on-the-job experience in the field of biotechnology.
- BioTrain-This competitive internship is available to high school and college students with opportunities ranging from marketing and business strategy to in-depth laboratory experience. If you are still interested in applying next year, applications will open in January. For any questions about BioTrain, please contact biotrain@hudsonalpha.org.
- Summer Short Course– This three-week course is available to high school students interested in synthetic biology. Synthetic Biology is one of the newest fields in the world of science. It is best described as the intersection of engineering and biology with a promising future focused on solving some of the world’s biggest challenges in health, energy and agriculture. The Short Course will highlight key design challenges in synthetic biology and provide interaction with research labs and biotechnology companies working in the field. The course is offered at a cost of $400 in addition to a $100 deposit upon registration. For more information, visit http://hudsonalpha.org/education/students/summer-programs.
- Sample to Sequence– This upper-level undergraduate course is a laboratory-based class available to students at UAH, Athens State University and Alabama A&M. Students work as part of a research team under direct supervision of seasoned instructors to define the metagenomic profile of environmental samples. This course is taught during the Fall and Spring semesters and requires approximately nine hours of lab work each week. If you are interested in Sample to Sequence, contact Dr. Bob Zahorchak bzahorchak@hudsonalpha.org.
Does HudsonAlpha offer classroom resources for teachers?
HudsonAlpha seeks to inspire the next generation of STEM professionals and that starts in the classroom. As an educator in Alabama, there are a variety of tools available to you to help foster a biotech-literate society.
The Annual Guidebook: Biotechnology Discoveries and Applications- Genetics, genomics and biotechnology are fast-paced and ever-changing fields with new discoveries occurring every day. To help educators stay up to date on these discoveries and learn how to bring them into the classroom, the HudsonAlpha Education Outreach team publishes an annual Biotechnology Guidebook. This Guidebook includes articles on foundational concepts as well as descriptions of new research discoveries. This year’s guidebook and past editions are available for download.
Educational Kits– In 2007, HudsonAlpha began a partnership with the Alabama Department of Education to develop modules and activities for middle and high school students connected to state curriculum requirements in genetics. Today, these kits reach more than 50,000 Alabama students annually through the Alabama Math, Science and Technology Initiative. Activities explore chromosome behavior in cells, diagnose genetic disorders and use bioinformatics databases to reinforce DNA structure and function. Recently, HudsonAlpha’s kits have been licensed to Carolina Biological Supply Company to promote and distribute to classrooms around the world. Details about kit contents, costs and ordering instructions can be accessed on the Carolina Biological website.
Field Trips– Our state-of-the-art facilities allow students to explore genetics concepts and experience activities associated with several biotechnology careers. These hands-on, laboratory-based field trips are tied to course of study objectives, put high-tech biotechnology tools in the hands of your students and engage them in scientific thinking. Educators can review our field trip options by downloading the PDF brochure or using the field trip planning service educationalescapes.org. Specific questions about field trips, including scheduling and field trip activity combinations, should be addressed to Dasi Price at dprice@hudsonalpha.org.
Digital Education– HudsonAlpha offers four digital education resources to students, teachers and the public: the Progress of Science timeline, GenomeCache®, HudsonAlpha iCell® and Touching Triton® — our newest online activity. Educator training workshops for Touching Triton will be held across Alabama during 2014 and 2015. To learn more about these sessions, email triton@hudsonalpha.org.
Are educational courses available to the public?
Public education is an essential component of HudsonAlpha’s mission to accelerate discoveries from the laboratories into real-world benefits. HudsonAlpha offers public education classes that are transforming the community into one of the most genetically literate in America.
Biotech 101/201- HudsonAlpha’s popular seminar series Biotech 101 is an introduction to the field of biotechnology and the influence of genetics on human health and disease. Offered each fall over four weekly sessions, participants are taught DNA basics and the relevance of genetics and genomics in medicine, agriculture and the environment. Each session includes a primer on basic genetic concepts followed by examples of these concepts in a research and/or commercial setting and presented by HudsonAlpha scientists and educators. Biotech 201 is a follow-on course for those who have completed Biotech 101. The course is offered each February as four, weekly sessions led by Dr. Neil Lamb, HudsonAlpha’s Vice President for Educational Outreach. Each year’s Biotech 201 explores a different topic in genetics and genomics research. Past special topics have included the human microbiome, cancer, neurodegenerative, psychiatric and adult-onset disorders, and technologies used for research, diagnosis and treatments.
Biotech 101 will be held again in September 2015 and registration will open in July. The Biotech series is very popular and seats fill up fast, so to stay on top of registration dates, please sign up for the HudsonAlpha newsletter.
Genomics in Your Practice- This continuing education series is for local physicians and other healthcare providers to learn more about genomics and its increasing relevance to clinical practice. Genomics in Your Practice is accredited by the Medical Association of the State of Alabama, therefore healthcare providers who take the course are able to receive continuing education credits. In addition to repeat offerings of the introductory course, future courses, offered quarterly, will delve deeper into genomics in specialty areas.
Are there opportunities for middle school students and teachers?
Middle School Summer Camps– Educational Outreach partners with Sci-Quest to provide several weeks of biotechnology camps for middle school students. These half-day camps are offered to rising 6th through 9th grade students. Three different camp options are offered — all housed within the educational spaces at HudsonAlpha. Information about each camp, including dates, descriptions and tuition, can be found on the Sci-Quest website. Biotechnology camps are listed on pages 3 and 4 of the downloadable Middle and High School camp listing. Registration for all camps occurs through Sci-Quest.
LABS– Launching Aspiring Biotechnology Scientists is an after school program offered through HudsonAlpha and the North Alabama Center for Educational Excellence. The goal of L.A.B.S is to equip students with the needed lab and critical thinking skills to work independently in a laboratory setting to answer scientific research questions and take advantage of future lab opportunities. For more information about L.A.B.S, contact Dasi Price at dprice@hudsonalpha.org or Madelene Loftin at mloftin@hudsonalpha.org