BU SCHOOL OF MEDICINE AWARDED MORE THAN $1.3 MILLION TO EXPAND ITS CITYLAB PROGRAM
Boston University School of Medicine
For Immediate Release – November 10, 2004
Contact: Kristen Perfetuo, 617-638-8491
(Boston)- Boston University School of Medicine’s (BUSM) CityLab is one of seven fiscal year 2004 Science Education Partnership Awards (SEPA) to receive more than $1.3 million from the National Center for Research Resources (NCRR) to increase and improve science literacy. Led by Carl Franzblau, PhD, professor and chairman of Biochemistry at BUSM, the five-year grant will allow CityLab to create a series of laboratory experiences that will enable students to explore blood as a means of understanding protein and cell structures.
SEPA programs are designed to improve the country’s life science literacy by bringing together biomedical and clinical researchers, educators, community groups, and other interested organizations in partnerships to create and disseminate programs that provide a better understanding of science research. Many of the programs serve kindergarten – 12th-grade students and teachers, as well as science centers and museums across the country. In addition to targeting students, SEPA partnerships also develop projects that educate the general public about health and disease, with the aim of helping people make better lifestyle choices as new medical advances emerge.
A component of the National Institutes of Health, the NCRR will provide $8.1 million to fund the seven SEPA programs. The projects will receive from two to five years of funding.
“We are thrilled to receive this award, which will help us continue our mission of promoting interest in science and scientific literacy,” said Franzblau, dean of the Division of Graduate Medical Sciences at BUSM. “For more than a decade, CityLab has offered students and teachers the opportunity to learn and apply concepts of molecular biology and biotechnology. It is our vision to enrich the lives of those interested in these fields and help them pursue a career in biomedical science.”
CityLab, a regional biotechnology learning laboratory, is the umbrella under which BUSM concentrates its pre-college science education efforts. The program has provided more than 60,000 middle and high school students and their teachers with hands-on, inquiry-based biomedical science laboratory experiences via its well-received curriculum supplements. CityLab also has two dedicated laboratories and a mobil bio-technology laboratory (MobileLab), which serve over 11,000 students per year.
CityLab curriculum supplements have been adopted for use by museums, schools and enrichment programs nationwide. In addition, the CityLab model, a centralized learning laboratory, has been replicated at institutions throughout the country.
“It is crucial that we get our young people engaged and excited about the tremendous advances being made in biomedical research,” said Judith Vaitukaitis, MD, director of the NCRR. “By exposing them to the challenges of medical science and the inquiry-based scientific method, we hope to both improve students’ science literacy and increase the number who will pursue biomedical careers.”
-30-