2014 Meeting Organizers:

Daniela Drummond-Barbosa
Elissa Lei
Mihaela Serpe
Mark Van Doren
 

Education and Professional Development

Wednesday, March 26, 2014

11:00 am-5:00 pm: GSA Trainee Boot Camp

Royal Palm Ballroom 4

Fee $40 in advance/$50 on site if space allows.

Based on feedback from trainees both in focus groups and individual conversations, GSA will implement a pre-conference “bootcamp” with a series of professional development workshops. To see the preliminary agenda, click here. Open to Grad Students and Postdocs only.

 

5:00-7:00 pm: GSA Education Special Interest Group Mixer/Pedagogy Workshop

Royal Palm Ballroom 5-6

Faculty with a passion for genetics education are encouraged to attend this event, where they can mix and mingle with other educators.  Current members of the Education SIG can catch up on actions taken by GSA with regards to the education initiative, and those who are not yet SIG members can learn about the Education SIG.  Information about GSA PREP, the Primers in GENETICS, GSA's editorial partnership with ASCB on CBE-Life Sciences Education, and other education-related opportunities will also be discussed.  From 6:00-7:00, we will have a workshop with four 15-minute presentations focused on pedagogy and best practices in education.  If you have cutting-edge education research that you would like to present, please contact Beth Ruedi.

 

6:00 pm	Where should I publish my educational materials?	Beth Ruedi (GSA)
6:15 pm	Using an undergraduate course to map and clone adult visible mutations	Eric Spana (Duke Univ)
6:30 pm	A genetic screen for new dis3 alleles in Drosophila	Hemlata Mistry (Widener Univ)
6:45 pm	An interdisciplinary project-based approach using Drosophila genetics and cell biology to improve reasoning, problem solving, and foundational knowledge in high school students	Sonia Hall (Univ of Kansas)

Thursday, March 27, 2014

8:30 am–12:30 pm: “The Genetics Conference Experience”

Invitation-only

The GSA Genetics Conference Experience provides students from genetics classes at local undergraduate institutions with the unique opportunity to observe distinguished career scientists present their current research in a conference setting.  The students, accompanied by their professor, will receive a background lecture and participate in an interactive discussion before attending part of a plenary session.  This informative and engaging program is meant to give students a glimpse into the real world of genetic research, and is NOT intended for students who are already involved in scientific research, but rather will provide students with the opportunity to learn about current scientific research outside of a textbook, witness the communication of scientific research first-hand, and ideally will foster an interest in furthering their science education. It is free of cost, and invitation-only.
 

12:45-2:00 pm: GSA Career Luncheon

Royal Palm Ballroom 4

The GSA Career Luncheon is an excellent opportunity for undergraduates, graduate students, and postdoctoral fellows to have informal conversations with senior career scientists regarding the unique challenges and rewards of a scientific career. The luncheon is organized by topic table. Topics may include things like: transition to independence, work-family balance, teaching at undergraduate institutions, careers outside traditional academia, the job search, the postdoc search, choosing the right graduate advisor, etc.
 

6:30-8:00 pm: Undergraduate Mixer

Tiki Pavilion

Undergraduate researchers attending the conference will network on their own, forming a peer-group that will help provide lasting support for the remainder of the conference.
 

Friday, March 28, 2014

1:30 – 4:00 pm: Plenary Session and Workshop for Undergraduate Researchers

Royal Palm Ballrooms 5-6

Undergraduate conference attendees will attend an “Undergraduate Plenary Session” from 1:30-2:45 pm, with two talks presented at a level appropriate for an undergraduate audience.  From 3:00-4:00 pm, undergraduates will have a chance to talk to a panel of graduate students about applications, interviewing, admission, choosing a lab, and quality of life in graduate school.

 

1:30 pm	Drosophila Personality and Brain	Sergey Nuzhdin (University of Southern California)
2:10 pm	From Circuit to Behavior	Wendi Neckameyer (St. Louis University)
2:50 pm	Break
3:00 pm	Graduate school panel discussion	Panelists: George Aranjuez Parag Bhatt Angela Castanieto Sarah Glenn Clark Sonia Marie Hall Ayse Cigdem Tunckanat

Saturday, March 29, 2014

6:45 - 8:45 pm: Drosophila Research and Pedagogy at a Primarily Undergraduate Institution (PUI)

Pacific Ballroom Salons 4-5

This workshop focuses on increasing the quality and visibility of Drosophila research performed at primarily undergraduate institutions (PUIs) and facilitating faculty and students in these endeavors. The goals include: 1) Encouraging undergraduate research by providing a forum for students to make oral presentations; 2) Connecting people interested in this career path with current PUI faculty; 3) Establishing a network among current PUI faculty to promote discussion and provide support on professional issues that differ from those at large institutions; 4) Sharing concepts and techniques that encourage the integration of Drosophila as a teaching tool in the classroom and laboratory.
 

Organizers:

Scott Ferguson, SUNY, Fredonia, New York, and Jennifer Kennell, Vassar College, Poughkeepsie, New York, and David M Roberts, Franklin & Marshall College, Lancaster, PA, and Josefa Steinhauer, Yeshiva University, New York