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Local Students, Teachers Dig Into Biotech at Bowie State

(Bowie, Md.) - Students and teachers from across the area are exploring forensic fingerprinting, DNA extraction and bacterial transformation as participants in the 2011 Biotechnology Summer Institute at Bowie State University (BSU).

"I tested my own genes to determine if a particular sequence was present by swabbing the inside of my cheeks," said Jakobi Bradford, an advanced-placement biology student at Bowie High School. A rising senior, Bradford is looking at a number of colleges to pursue a degree in biology.

The Biotechnology Summer Institute promotes awareness of biotechnology careers among college students and provides them with unique laboratory experience for success in postgraduate studies. The first session of the program, led by Dr. George Ude, associate professor in the Department of Natural Sciences at BSU, will run through July 1, 2011 and a second session will run July 5-18, 2011 on campus. Participants include BSU students as well as local undergraduate and high school students and teachers.

"The biotechnology institute is a great way for me to gain valuable research experience in my field," said Jasmine Gilmore, a junior biology major at Bowie State. "This type of experience will help me prepare for graduate school." Gilmore hopes to continue developing her research and biotechnology skills to get into a cellular and molecular biology graduate program next year.

The institute also attracted high school teachers, such as Kristin Morgan and Chayse Davis Campbell from Woodstream Christian Academy in Prince George's County, to find new ways to spark interest in science among their students and more effectively prepare them to succeed at the college level. Teachers from other Prince George's County high schools such as Bowie High School and Kenmore Middle School, as well as Morgan State University, are also taking advantage of this professional development opportunity.

"We are able to conduct experiments with equipment such as the centrifuge, used to separate mixtures, that is not available at our own schools," said Ms. Morgan.

As a result of this experience, Bowie State and the Woodstream Christian Academy are developing an ongoing partnership to provide more opportunities for its high school students to gain lab experience. The partnership would allow teachers to bring various science classes to the university throughout the school year to conduct lab experiments. It would also encourage high school students to pursue advanced study in biology.

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Brandon Yancey, a Bowie State University graduate student majoring in communications, was a contributing writer for this press release.

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Bowie State University (BSU) is an important higher education access portal for qualified persons from diverse academic and socioeconomic backgrounds who seek a high quality and affordable public comprehensive university. The University places special emphasis on the science, technology, teacher education, business, and nursing disciplines within the context of a liberal arts education. For more information about BSU, visit the website at www.bowiestate.edu.