The Small World Initiative:

A model program for first-year student research and highlights

for the implementationTiffany Tsang, PhD

Yale Universitytiffany.tsang@yale.edu

Educational MandateIncreasing Demand in STEM Occupations• By 2018, STEM jobs =

5.3% of U.S. jobs• Increase = 1 million

jobs• 92% will require

college education/training

Retention Problem – An opportunity

<40% of college students intending to major in STEM complete a STEM

degree Even fewer of certain ethnic minority groups (NRC, 2011)

Reasons –• High performers -- uninspiring intro

courses • Low performers -- insufficient math prep

An Urgent Need and a Solution

• Equivalent to 3 to 4 million over the next decade

• Increasing retention from 40% to 50% would generate almost ¾ of the one million additional STEM degrees needed

Engage to Excel• Focus on 1st two years of college for one million

more STEM professionals because…

o 1st two years actively discourage students from pursuing STEM degrees

o they are common to all types of colleges and universities

o retaining more STEM majors is the lowest-cost, fastest policy option to meet the labor force needs

Recommendation #2“Advocate and provide support for replacing standard laboratory courses with discovery-

based research courses.”

Premise:Students who engage in research early in college

• are more likely to persist in STEM majors

• receive better grades

• complete degrees more quickly

Engage to Excel: Producing One Million Additional College

Graduates with Degrees in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics

President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology

http://www.whitehouse.gov/ostp/pcast

Examples of Research Courses

• Freshman Biology Experienceo UT-Austin

• SEA PHAGESo HHMI and U Pittsburgho Graham Hatfull

• Rainforest Expedition and Laboratoryo Yale Universityo Scott Strobel

• Genomics Education Partnershipo Washington Universityo Sally Elgin

• UCLA Undergraduate Research Consortium in Functional Genomicso Utpal Banerjee

New Initiative: From Microbes to Molecules

• 2 semester sequence:• Biology:

o Jo Handelsmano Carol Bascom-Slacko Jessamina Blumo Tiffany Tsang

• Chemistry:o Andy Phillipso Gill Phillipso Michal Hallside

Undergraduates solving a human health threat

http://www.ecademy.com/node.php?id=104820

Adapted from "Hospital stays with MRSA infections 1993-2005”Source: AHRQ, Center for Delivery, Organization and Markets, Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project, Nationwide Inpatient Sample, 1993-2005."

64% mortality from MRSA blood infections15-fold increase in MRSA-association mortality since 1993

Cases of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) annually in US

A global health crisis: An opportunity to contribute solutions

Big Pharma Pulls out of Antibiotic Discovery

Antibiotics• 75% of antibiotics in clinical use

derived from soil bacteria• Estimated 100,000 natural products

made by Streptomyces (most prolific genus)

• Most remain undiscovered –o Most bacteria in soil are unculturableo Many pathways for secondary metabolism are “cryptic”

Becoming scientists and contributing to the discovery of new antibiotics

Choose an environmental soil sample

Isolate microbes Visualize antibiotic production

Purify and solve antibiotic structure

Prioritize microbes

Identify and characterize

Extract antibiotics

Ways to find new antibiotics

New habitats New screens

StreptomycesSaccharopolysporaPseudomonasBurkholderia

From Microbes to Molecules: A comparative approach

• Opportunity to teach foundational biological concepts:o “Why do antibiotics kill bacteria and not us?”

• The cellular and molecular concepts woven around into the process of antibiotic mode of action

• Students will understand:o how β-lactam antibiotics kill bacteria and not humans

• Penicillin and β-lactam antibiotics• Prokaryotic structure• Walls/membranes

o why pore-forming antibiotics kill bacteria• Trimethoprim• Nutrients• Primary metabolism

M2M: Bringing together biology and chemistry

…. And designing experiments

M2M Student Symposium

Small World Initiative• National mandate in science education• Global issues in infectious disease• Strategies for antibiotic discovery

Small World InitiativeCrowdsourcing Discovery

Call for Collaborators: National expansion

INSTITUTION PILOT PARTNERS

Baylor University Diane Hartman

Benedictine University Monica Tischler

Bethel University Paula Soneral

Brigham Young University-Idaho Todd Kelson

Chadron State College Ann Buchmann

Clark College Ryan Kustusch

Drexel University Shivanthi Anandan

Eastern Connecticut State University

Barb Murdoch

Florida Southern College Brittany Gasper

Gaston College Cliff Grimsley

National University Ana Maria Barral

North Carolina State University at Raleigh

Alice Lee

North Dakota State University Angela Hodgson

North Hennepin Community College

Craig Longtine

Seton Hill University Kristen Butela

State College of Florida Eric Warrick

Tulsa Community College Neil Enis

University of Connecticut Karen Pelletreau

University of Hawaii at Manoa Sachie Etherington

University of Pittsburgh Jean Schmidt

University of Texas at San Antonio Janakiram Seshu

University of West Alabama Mustafa Morsy

Washington State University Consetta Helmick

Worcester Polytechnic Institute Michael Buckholt

Yale University

Authentic research in introductory setting

• Early authentic research experience

• Relevant research project that students feel passionate about

• Inserting research project into introductory courses:o Cell and molecular biologyo Microbiologyo Lab course for majorso Lab course for non-majors

Training workshop• 6-day working

meeting:o Laboratory training of

antibiotic discovery protocols

o Pedagogical principles based on Scientific Teaching

o Group work to develop courses

Highlights of Training

• Sharing of best practices

• Learning from each other

• Time for collaboration• Making new friends

and colleagues

How do we know if the classes are working? Assessment data

• CURE – pre/post

• Project ownership survey (POS)

• Comparison courseso 1 traditional sectiono 1 SWI section

• Withdrawals• Share assessments

• Denofrio, L.A., Russell, B., Lopatto, D., & Lu, Y. (2007). Linking student interests to science curricula. Science, 318, 1872-1873.

• Lopatto, D., et al. (2008). Genomics Education Partnership. Science, 322, 684-685.• Hanauer DI1, Frederick J, Fotinakes B, Strobel SA. (2012). Linguistic analysis of project ownership for

undergraduate research experiences. CBE Life Sci Educ. 11, 378-85.

Implementation: Spring 2014 Pilot Year

• Evaluate the programo Highlight successeso Identify obstacleso Accumulate best practiceso Survey faculty experiences

• Study student outcomeso Project ownershipo Longitudinal studies

• Retention in college• Retention in science

• Teach the courseo Launch all 25 courses

simultaneouslyo Flexibility in the research

project and biological concepts

o Build new protocolso Make a bank of

assessments and resources

Website as a social network and scientific and teaching resource• Scientific database• Repository for teaching materials

What we’re learning so far

• Research Projecto Teaching 2-3 days/week to

fit in all researcho At least 1 hour 30 or 1

hour 45 min sections is key

• A few of the partners are presenting to their Trustees/high administration with very positive feedback

• Course developmento Replacing traditional lab

activities with this research project is much easier

o Creating a brand new course is more difficult• Low enrollment• Faculty push-back

o Create modular pieces for instructors to use

National Visibility

• ASM President’s Forum topic: undergraduate research courses and SWI will be highlighted

• Undergraduate and instructor partners posters will have own designated section next to “Outstanding Poster” section

Beyond Pilot Year

• International expansiono Collaboration with the ASM International

committee

• Open access to teaching and scientific materials

• Scientific publications• Teaching publications• Citizen science

• Building a chemical analysis hub

Spawning Independent Research Projects

• Identifying new antibiotic synthetic gene clusters

• Isolating new strains that produces an known antibiotic

• Engineering ways to turn on cryptic pathways

• Differing culture conditionso New media for culturingo Supplementing/mixing various

media

• Studying unique soil samples

• Discovering natural source of previously synthesized antibiotic

Small World Initiative: Presents a unique

combination

Acknowledgements

• Gillian Phillips• Eric Patridge

• Jo Handelsman• Simon Hernandez• Jenny Frederick• Carol Bascom-Slack

Generous Funding• The Leona M. and Harry B.

Helmsley Charitable Trust

• Davis Educational Foundation

• Howard Hughes Medical Institute

• Yale University Office of the Provost

• Thomas L. Kempner, Jr.

• The Benet Fund

Tiffany Tsang, PhDYale University

tiffany.tsang@yale.edu

The Small World Initiative:

Crowdsourcing Antibiotic Discovery with College Students

Thank you!