BIORETS: Convergence Research Experiences for Teachers in Synthetic and Systems Biology to Address Challenges in Food, Health, Energy, and Environment

该BIORETS网站授予位于宾夕法尼亚州米德尔敦的宾夕法尼亚州立大学哈里斯堡分校，将在夏季为八名教师提供为期七周的培训。2024年至2026年将招聘三批教师。教师趋同研究经验（C-RET）将为服务不足学区的中学科学教师提供研究培训。教师将对CRISPR/Cas9基因组编辑、植物组织培养与转化、生物信息学、机器学习、基于人工智能的数字平台等前沿技术进行研究。让教师接触融合研究，使他们能够通过基于项目的学习活动来增强现有的K-12 STEM课程，以吸引和留住STEM学科的学生，并为STEM劳动力创造渠道。这些活动可以为少数民族和代表性不足的学生创造一条从事STEM职业的途径，从而应对当前在食品、健康、能源和气候变化方面的挑战，从而对社会产生变革性影响。这个C-RET网站的目标是利用合成生物学和系统生物学（Syn/SysBio）方法和工具在食品、健康、能源和环境（FHEE）方面的应用。该计划将(1)使教师沉浸在持续的，真正的Syn/ sysbio为重点的融合研究中；(2)激励和支持教师开发和实施基于实践的中学课堂课程。拟议的创新STEM研究经验侧重于基础研究，以a)提高作物的产量、营养品质和抗病性，b)利用CRISPR/Cas9将基因编辑技术应用于工业大麻和其他作物，c)在捕获温室气体的同时修复废弃的矿山土地土壤，d)用植物来源的抗生素治疗耐药性感染，e)利用机器学习进行植物监测。导师包括宾夕法尼亚州立大学生物科学和工程系以及科学和学校中心的教职员工。导师根据提交的简历和NSF ETAP申请选择教师。将优先考虑那些在至少有50%人口服务不足的学区任教的教师。有关该计划的更多信息，请联系PI （Dr. sairam Rudrabhatla, svr11@psu.edu）或co-PI （Dr. Kathy Hill, kmm173@psu.edu）。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，认为值得支持。

This BIORETS Site award to Penn State Harrisburg, located in Middletown, PA, will support the training of eight teachers for seven weeks during the summer. Three cohorts of teachers will be recruited from 2024 to 2026. The Convergence-Research Experience for Teachers (C-RET) will provide research training to secondary science teachers in underserved school districts. Teachers will conduct research in cutting-edge technologies such as CRISPR/Cas9 genome editing, plant tissue culture and transformation, bioinformatics, machine learning, and artificial intelligence based digital platform. Exposing teachers to convergence research empowers them to enhance the existing K-12 STEM curricula with project-based learning activities to engage and retain students in STEM disciplines and create a pipeline for the STEM workforce. These activities can have a transformative impact on society by creating a pathway for minority and underrepresented students to pursue STEM careers to address current challenges in food, health, energy and climate change.The goal of this C-RET site is to utilize the synthetic and systems biology (Syn/SysBio) approaches and tools for their applications in food, health, energy, and the environment (FHEE). The program will (1) immerse teachers in an ongoing, authentic Syn/SysBio-focused convergence research and (2) inspire and support teachers in developing and implementing practice-based curriculum for secondary classrooms. The proposed innovative STEM research experiences focus on basic research to a) enhance the yield, nutritional quality and disease resistance in crops, b) apply gene editing techniques to industrial hemp and other crops using CRISPR/Cas9, c) remediate abandoned mine land soils while capturing greenhouse gases, d) treat drug resistant infections with plant-derived antibiotics and e) utilize machine learning for plant monitoring. Mentors include faculty and staff from Penn State’s Biological Sciences and Engineering departments and the Center for Science and the Schools. Teachers are selected by mentors based on submitted resume and the NSF ETAP application. Priority will be given to teachers who teach in school districts with at least 50% underserved populations. More information about the program is available by contacting the PI (Dr.Sairam Rudrabhatla, svr11@psu.edu) or the co-PI (Dr. Kathy Hill, kmm173@psu.edu).This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.