Public school classrooms are often strapped for resources, with ill-fitted lab equipment and a lackluster science curriculum, and teachers often struggle to provide interactive science opportunities for their students. Gladstone scientists believe a highly skilled workforce benefits the state of California and that underprivileged students deserve to be part of the exciting field of stem cell research. So, in 2008 we created a summer internship experience for public high school students in our laboratories in an effort to increase the number of underrepresented students who pursue undergraduate and graduate science degrees and to expand the diversity of biomedical researchers.
Each summer, six rising high school seniors are selected for the Gladstone Summer Scholars (GSS) internship program and spend 8-weeks working with a mentor in our labs spending 75% of their time conducting biomedical research and 25% of their time in supplementary educational activities. Our interns are exposed to the lab environment, trained in basic lab techniques, and are better prepared to pursue an array of opportunities within the biotech field. While the PhD path to science is definitely laid out for our interns, they are also introduced to the many high paying jobs in biomedical research that do not require a doctorate degree, such as lab aides, lab managers, and research technologists. The ultimate goal of our high school summer internship program is to increase the number of underrepresented students who pursue undergraduate and graduate science degrees, thereby expanding the pool of diverse biomedical researchers.
CIRM funding allowed us to ensure that two of our six interns specialize specifically in stem cell biology. Our interns will be able to learn methods for enhancing cell-fate commitment and analyses to determine genetic variation on cellular maturation and survival. Our institution has a robust stem cell biology research program, and our scientists are enthusiastic about sharing their passion for this science with our high school interns.
We believe that it is important for the state of California to invest in training and employing its local residents. Many scientific institutions and biotech companies recruit foreign scientists to fill positions in their laboratories. Our summer internship program for local public school students aims to tackle this discrepancy by training the next generation of biomedical researchers.
Reporting Period:
Year 2
Each summer, the Gladstone Summer Scholars (GSS) internship program recruits six rising public high school seniors to work with a mentor in our labs for 9-weeks. Interns spend 75% of their time conducting biomedical research and 25% of their time in supplementary educational activities. Their work culminates in a final poster session in which students describe their work, hypothesis and findings to the scientific community at Gladstone.
Throughout the internship, students are exposed to the lab environment, trained in basic lab techniques, and participate in a six course series titled “Thinking Outside of the Box” activities. These experiences are aimed to better prepare our interns to pursue an array of opportunities within the biotech field. While the PhD path to science is definitely laid out for our students, they are also introduced to the many high paying jobs in biomedical research that do not require a doctorate degree, such as lab aides, lab managers, and research technologists.
San Francisco is a biotech hub, bursting with world-class scientists and innovations in stem-cell research. However, this lies in stark contrast to the lack of opportunities available to students in San Francisco public high schools, especially in the sciences. We believe that it is important for California to invest in training and employing its local residents for a highly skilled workforce benefits everyone. Many scientific institutions and biotech companies recruit foreign scientists to fill positions in their laboratories. Our GSS internship program for local public school students aims to tackle this discrepancy by training the next generation of biomedical researchers.
Gladstone believes that local public school students can and should participate in the exciting field of stem cell research. The goal of our GSS internship program is to train these students early so as to increase the number of underrepresented students who pursue undergraduate and graduate science degrees; therefore expanding the diversity of biomedical researchers.
Reporting Period:
Year 3
Public school classrooms are often strapped for resources, with ill-fitted lab equipment and a lackluster science curriculum, and teachers often struggle to provide interactive science opportunities for their students. Gladstone scientists believe a highly skilled workforce benefits the state of California and that underprivileged students deserve to be part of the exciting field of stem cell research. So, in 2008 we created a summer internship experience for public high school students in our laboratories in an effort to increase the number of underrepresented students who pursue undergraduate and graduate science degrees and to expand the diversity of biomedical researchers.
Each summer, six rising high school seniors are selected for the Gladstone Summer Scholars (GSS) internship program and spend 8-weeks working with a mentor in our labs spending 75% of their time conducting biomedical research and 25% of their time in supplementary educational activities. Our interns are exposed to the lab environment, trained in basic lab techniques, and are better prepared to pursue an array of opportunities within the biotech field. While the PhD path to science is definitely laid out for our interns, they are also introduced to the many high paying jobs in biomedical research that do not require a doctorate degree, such as lab aides, lab managers, and research technologists. The ultimate goal of our high school summer internship program is to increase the number of underrepresented students who pursue undergraduate and graduate science degrees, thereby expanding the pool of diverse biomedical researchers.
CIRM funding allowed us to ensure that two of our six interns specialize specifically in stem cell biology. Our interns will be able to learn methods for enhancing cell-fate commitment and analyses to determine genetic variation on cellular maturation and survival. Our institution has a robust stem cell biology research program, and our scientists are enthusiastic about sharing their passion for this science with our high school interns.
We believe that it is important for the state of California to invest in training and employing its local residents. Many scientific institutions and biotech companies recruit foreign scientists to fill positions in their laboratories. Our summer internship program for local public school students aims to tackle this discrepancy by training the next generation of biomedical researchers.
Reporting Period:
Year 4
Public school classrooms are often strapped for resources, with ill-fitted lab equipment and a lackluster science curriculum, and teachers often struggle to provide interactive science opportunities for their students. Gladstone scientists believe a highly skilled workforce benefits the state of California and that underprivileged students deserve to be part of the exciting field of stem cell research. So, in 2008 we created a summer internship experience for public high school students in our laboratories in an effort to increase the number of underrepresented students who pursue undergraduate and graduate science degrees and to expand the diversity of biomedical researchers.
Each summer, we hand select a few rising high school seniors are selected for the Gladstone Summer Scholars (GSS) internship program. After a week-long biotech bootcamp, those students spend 8-weeks working with a mentor in our labs spending 75% of their time conducting biomedical research and 25% of their time in supplementary educational activities. Our interns are exposed to the lab environment, trained in basic lab techniques, and are better prepared to pursue an array of opportunities within the biotech field. While the PhD path to science is definitely laid out for our interns, they are also introduced to the many high paying jobs in biomedical research that do not require a doctorate degree, such as lab aides, lab managers, and research technologists. The ultimate goal of our high school summer internship program is to increase the number of underrepresented students who pursue undergraduate and graduate science degrees, thereby expanding the pool of diverse biomedical researchers.
CIRM funding allowed us to ensure that two of our interns each summer specialized specifically in stem cell biology. Our interns will be able to learn methods for enhancing cell-fate commitment and analyses to determine genetic variation on cellular maturation and survival. Our institution has a robust stem cell biology research program, and our scientists are enthusiastic about sharing their passion for this science with our high school interns.
We believe that it is important for the state of California to invest in training and employing its local residents. Many scientific institutions and biotech companies recruit foreign scientists to fill positions in their laboratories. Our summer internship program for local public school students aims to tackle this discrepancy by training the next generation of biomedical researchers.
Grant Application Details
Application Title:
[REDACTED] Summer Scholars internship program
Public Abstract:
Public school classrooms are often strapped for resources, with ill-fitted lab equipment and a lackluster science curriculum, and teachers often struggle to provide interactive science opportunities for their students. Our scientists believe a highly skilled workforce benefits the state of California and that underprivileged students deserve to be part of the exciting field of stem cell research. So, in 2008 we created a summer internship experience for public high school students in our laboratories in an effort to increase the number of underrepresented students who pursue undergraduate and graduate science degrees and to expand the diversity of biomedical researchers.
Each summer, six rising high school seniors are selected to work with a mentor in our labs spending 75% of their time conducting biomedical research and 25% of their time in supplementary educational activities. Their work culminates in a final poster session in which students describe their work, hypothesis and findings to our scientific community.
CIRM funding will allow us to ensure that two of our six interns specialize specifically in stem cell biology. Our interns will be able to learn methods for enhancing cell-fate commitment and analyses to determine genetic variation on cellular maturation and survival. Our institution has a robust stem cell biology research program, and our scientists are enthusiastic about sharing their passion for this science with our high school interns.
Statement of Benefit to California:
We believe that it is important for the state of California to invest in training and employing its local residents. Many scientific institutions and biotech companies recruit foreign scientists to fill positions in their laboratories. Our summer internship program for local public school students aims to tackle this discrepancy by training the next generation of biomedical researchers. Each summer, rising seniors in local public high schools are placed into 8-week internships in our laboratories. Our interns are exposed to the lab environment, trained in basic lab techniques, and are better prepared to pursue an array of opportunities within the biotech field. While the PhD path to science is definitely laid out for our interns, they are also introduced to the many high paying jobs in biomedical research that do not require a doctorate degree; such as lab aides, lab managers, and research technologists. The ultimate goal of our high school summer internship program is to increase the number of underrepresented students who pursue undergraduate and graduate science degrees, thereby expanding the pool of diverse biomedical researchers.
