NEWS RELEASE

Office of External Communications

Houston, TX 77204-5017 Fax: 713.743.8199

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
May 14, 2007

Contact: Contact: Mike Emery
713.743.8186 (office)
713.415.6551 (pager)
pemery@uh.edu

HIGH SCHOOL BIOTECHNOLOGY INSTRUCTION FOCUS OF UH BIO TECH UNIVERSITY
Summer Workshop to Instruct High School Teachers in Principles of Biotechnology

The changing medical landscape is creating a need for trained biotechnology professionals. The University of Houston’s Center for Life Sciences Technology (CLiST) already is training college students for this emergent field. Now, it is assisting high school educators in their efforts to teach biotechnology basics in the classroom.

CLiST’s Bio Tech University has started preparing high school educators for biotechnology instruction through monthly workshops and is currently seeking teachers to participate in a summer seminar to be conducted June 4 – 15 at Houston Community College (HCC) Northeast at 555 Community College Drive in Houston. Participants must be public school teachers certified in Career and Technology Education (CTE) or science. They will be eligible for a $30 an hour stipend.

“This program will teach high school teachers how to effectively introduce biotechnology in their classrooms,” said Chris Baca, executive director of CLiST. “It’s important to instill an initial interest in this field at the high school level so students can understand biotechnology’s practical applications and start thinking about how they can focus their college studies.”

Bio Tech University will be led by A.E. “Pete” Linkel, UH CLiST adjunct professor of biotechnology and Chandra Mittal, UH CLiST adjunct professor, and biotechnology professor at HCC. In-class exercises will focus on topics such as the isolation of DNA, using DNA fingerprinting for forensic identification, understanding the economics and applications of biodiesel fuel and exploring the uses of biotechnology techniques for environmental disaster remediation and monitoring.

“These are exercises that the participating teachers can incorporate into biotechnology activities in their classrooms or laboratories,” Linkin said.

To register for this event or for additional details, contact Baca at 713-743-4076 or clbaca@uh.edu.

WHAT:   Bio Tech University – Summer Workshop
WHEN:   June 4 - 15
WHERE:   Houston Community College Northeast
555 Community College Drive
Houston, Texas 77013
WHO:   UH Center for Life Sciences Technology
http://texasbiotech.org

For more information about UH visit the university’s ‘Newsroom’ at www.uh.edu/admin/media/newsroom.