• W&J Receives $1 Million Grant from Howard Hughes Medical Institute

WASHINGTON, PA (May 27, 2008) - Washington & Jefferson College is one of 48 undergraduate institutions selected, based on a competitive grant proposal, to receive a combined $60 million in funding from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI) to help usher in a new era of biological science education.

W&J will receive a $1 million grant for the advancement of science education to include student research; faculty development; and curriculum, equipment, and laboratory development. The grant is the third of its kind awarded to W&J. In 1996, W&J received a $600,000, four-year HHMI grant. In 2000, the four-grant to W&J was $700,000. With a new four-year financial commitment, which begins in the fall, Alice Lee, Ph.D., professor and chair of biology at W&J and program director for the grant, is excited about the opportunities and how the grant will help W&J advance its science offerings.

"This is a great opportunity for W&J, an opportunity to expand programs we already have in place as well as add new programs," Lee said. "The new HHMI-supported programs are all about enhancing learning for students and revolutionizing sciences at the College. The focus is on
the integration of mathematics and information technology into the biological sciences."

A year ago, the HHMI issued a challenge to 224 undergraduate colleges nationwide: identify creative new ways to engage your students in the biological sciences. As a result, colleges in 21 states, including six others in Pennsylvania, and Puerto Rico will receive $700,000 to $1.6 million over the next four years.

HHMI has challenged colleges to create more engaging science classes, bring real-world research experiences to students, and increase the diversity of students who study science.

"The undergraduate years are vital to attracting and retaining students who will be the future of science," said HHMI President Thomas R. Cech, Ph.D. "We want students to experience science as the creative, challenging, and rewarding endeavor that it is."

The HHMI grants allow for flexibility and creativity so schools can identify novel strategies that may work in a variety of settings with a variety of students. Some will add modern techniques or interdisciplinary classes to their traditional curriculum, while others will completely redesign their biological science majors.

Lee said the project for W&J is two-pronged: (1) long-term ecological monitoring at the Abernathy Field Station; and (2) molecular bioinformatics/computational biology to integrate microarray DNA analysis and computational biology into biology, biochemistry, neuroscience, and psychology curricula.

New initiatives in student research, Lee said, will include additional off-campus research internships for students during Intersession and the summer, as well as on-campus research for student-faculty teams in research stations and laboratories outside the College throughout the
year. Related to faculty development, the grant will support a new tenure-track position in biology in molecular evolution/systematics that will be established in 2010 to "bridge the organismic/molecular biology gap and to provide students with exposure to this growing field."

Finally, curriculum, equipment, and laboratory renovation will include the implementation of information technology into many new courses; computers, servers, and software to manage data sets; and renovations to the Dieter-Porter Life Science Building.

"This diverse pool of grant recipients shows that HHMI is committed to fund new ideas and new ways of approaching science education," said Peter J. Bruns, Ph.D., HHMI's vice president for grants and special programs. "We want to help create successful models for teaching science that can spread throughout the higher education community."

Lee said W&J was successful because "the College has run two previously highly-successful HHMI grants, and our track record and leadership with the program is strong. This, plus the new programs that we propose that address the theme of math and information technology integration into biology, were the key factors."

The 2008 grant winners were selected through a stringent review process by distinguished scientists and educators that narrowed the 192 applicants down to 48 winners. HHMI invited the 224 colleges with a track record of preparing undergraduate students for research careers to submit proposals.

About Washington & Jefferson College

Washington & Jefferson College, located in Washington, Pa., is a national liberal arts college founded in 1781. Committed to providing each of its students with the highest-quality undergraduate education available, W&J offers a traditional liberal arts curriculum emphasizing interdisciplinary study and independent student work. For more information about W&J, visit www.washjeff.edu <http://www.washjeff.edu/>  or call 888-926-3529.

About HHMI

HHMI is the nation's largest private supporter of science education. It has invested more than $1.2 billion in grants to reinvigorate life science education at both research universities and liberal arts colleges and to engage the nation's leading scientists in teaching. In 2007, it launched the Science Education Alliance, which will serve as a national resource for the development and distribution of innovative science education materials and methods.