ASGCT Expands Biotech Teacher Training Program with Milwaukee Public Schools

The American Society of Gene and Cell Therapy (ASGCT) will continue an innovative program to provide Milwaukee teachers with curriculum training and lab equipment so they can bring biotechnology experiments into their classrooms.

A generous two-year grant from Bristol Myers Squibb will support expenses related to the continuation and expansion of the program Biotech Discovery Labs: Teacher Training and Classroom Experience, which was piloted in 2022. The program aims to increase access to the booming biotechnology field through health and science education within Milwaukee Public Schools (MPS).

ASGCT invites 15 teachers from MPS middle and high schools to participate in in-person lab training at the Society’s Milwaukee-area office July 17-20. With the help of ASGCT staff, they’ll use supplies covered by the grant to perform and teach experiments on DNA extraction, fingerprinting, and transformation; introduction to gel electrophoresis; CRISPR; and PCR. Teachers will also be invited to attend ASGCT’s Annual Meeting and the National Science Teaching Association Conference. In July 2024, the program will expand to 20 teachers.

The idea for this program came from ASGCT’s desire to expand its diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) efforts beyond initiatives that target only post-doctoral researchers. By exposing students to science earlier in their education, ASGCT hopes to spark their interest sooner and improve access to better opportunities after graduation. ASGCT piloted the project last summer with teachers from four MPS schools. Some of those teachers will serve as program volunteers during this summer’s training.

More information will be available on ASGCT’s website in the coming months. Please direct any questions about this program to Alex Wendland, ASGCT director of communications.

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