SBS in the Age of COVID-19

Dear Friends of the SBS,

R-nought , super-spreader, contact tracing, flatten the curve.

These terms, once restricted to disease ecologists, virologists, and epidemiologists are now common in our everyday language as we battle the SARS-CoV2 pandemic. News venues regularly discuss efforts to “flatten the curve” by reducing our contact with each other, which reduces the transmission of the virus, i.e., decreases the basic reproduction number of the virus called R 0 (R-nought). The pandemic underscores the importance of science in our society and our mission to train the next generation of educated citizens and biologists.

Although the pandemic has changed the way we achieve our mission it has not stopped us by any means. During the middle of spring break, with only a few days’ notice, our dedicated faculty moved from an exclusively on-site live delivery of education to online. It’s far from perfect, and we look forward to the days when we can provide the requisite hands-on laboratory training to our students, the very skills employed by the scientists around the globe combatting the pandemic at this moment. Currently, we are preparing for our Fall courses with an eye to the possibility that we will be moving in and out “safer at home” orders, and how to best give our students the training that they need while reducing the spread of the virus.

Our research continues, albeit largely at home. With the exception of maintaining critical organisms and reagents, our faculty and their trainees are working independently to advance their research from anywhere they can set up a computer— their kitchen, laundry room, or bedroom. One silver lining of the situation is that we have gotten to know each other’s pets and families. Even so we look forward to times when we can return to the bustle of our laboratories, and recognize that while we work together to quash this pandemic, the future return to our labs may be short-lived, and therefore we must focus on our highest priority laboratory work with an all-hands approach instead of the more individual efforts of the past.

Screen shot: Working from Home

Here’s to advancing our science in the days ahead and to remember to spread kindness not COVID. Despite the changes, we continue to celebrate the achievements of our faculty, and the completion of degrees by our students: way to go class of 2020! You did it, and it wasn’t how you expected or easy, but you persevered. Congratulations! We hope to keep in touch with you in the future. Screen Shot: Working from Home

Finally, the changes we are experiencing with COVID-19 are in addition to, not in place of, regular life transitions. At this time, we mourn the passing of Distinguished Professor Gordon Lark, founder of the Department of Biology in 1970. We will dearly miss him. As I prepare to transition from my position as Director and return to the faculty, I recognize that the pleasure and honor I’ve felt serving as Chair and now Director of the School of Biological Sciences over the past six years stem from Gordon’s legacy.

I look forward to seeing all of you at a future SBS event.

All my best,

M. Denise Dearing Director & Distinguished Professor