INNOVATION AWARDS
our 2023 faculty
INNOVATION award winners O
ur Faculty Innovation Grants are funded by the Kirwan Smith Family and the Faculty Compensation and Teaching Excellence Fund and are awarded to faculty members based upon the ability to create a proposal for a teaching experience that transcends the normal school curriculum. These grants offer $6,000 for classroom materials and $6,000 stipends to compensate for planning time for curriculum development. “The ideas we received this year were strong, and we thank everyone who took the time to put together proposals over the summer,” said Director of Development Elizabeth Smith P ’17. “We are grateful for our donors’ support as these grants allow us to pilot new ideas for our students across the entire School.” ■
Upper School MiniOne PCR/Gel Electrophoresis Systems Cecelia Pan P ’16, Science Department Chair This grant funds a MiniOne BioScience Classroom Kit that offers students a more hands-on approach and enhances the Upper School science experience in courses where biotechnology protocols and information are part of the curriculum, including Biology, AP Biology, and Biotechnology. These mini-kits contain both PCR and electrophoresis systems for teaching biotechnology labs in the classroom, allowing all students in a class to be involved in labs instead of being observers. Equipment that allows all students to directly participate can greatly improve the class experience for everyone, says Science Department Chair Cecelia Pan P ’16. “For example, Grade 9 Biology will use this equipment to do a simple gel electrophoresis where the DNA is precut,” Pan explains. “This lab investigates DNA fingerprinting and can now be done in small groups instead of as a demonstration. There will be enough gel electrophoresis apparatus where the students in AP Biology and Biotechnology can work individually or in groups of two.”
40
Fall 2023
Brimmer Magazine
