Klionsky Named National Academies Biology Mentor
February 23, 2006
ANN ARBOR, Mich---LSI Research Professor Daniel J. Klionsky has been named an Education Mentor in the Life Sciences by The National Academies February 21, 2006 along with 20 other scientists from around the country.
Klionsky is also Abram Sager Collegiate Professor of Life Sciences, professor of Molecular, Cellular & Developmental Biology and Biological Chemistry and an NSF Distinguished Teaching Scholar.
He was an Education Fellow in the Life Sciences in the 2005 National Academies Summer Institute on Undergraduate Education in Biology at the University of Wisconsin, Madison . The summer institute was aimed at fostering innovative approaches to teaching undergraduate biology and focused on how to improve large introductory biology courses. Besides developing teachable units, participants at the institute discussed how to encourage colleagues and graduate teaching assistants to adopt new teaching practices, how to engage non-biology majors and increase student participation in large lectures, and how to properly assess student learning. Admission to the summer institute was highly competitive.
The institute grew out of a recommendation in a 2003 report issued by the National Academies' National Research Council titled Bio2010: Transforming Undergraduate Education for Future Research Biologists, which called for changes in the way college students are taught biology. The report noted that undergraduate biology education was failing to keep pace with revolutionary advances in biomedical research that require those working in the field to have a good understanding of other scientific disciplines -- such as math and computer sciences -- and urged instructors to integrate other subjects into their biology classes. Bio2010 also called for faculty development opportunities to improve the interdisciplinary knowledge and teaching capabilities of biology professors.
The National Academies perform an unparalleled public service by bringing together committees of experts in all areas of scientific and technological endeavor. These experts serve pro bono to address critical national issues and give advice to the federal government and the public.
Four organizations comprise the Academies: the National Academy of Sciences, the National Academy of Engineering, the Institute of Medicine and the National Research Council.
National Academies Education Mentors in the Life Sciences 2005-2006
Facilitators, instructors, and organizers are named as Mentors to recognize their role in mentoring Institute participants as well as their history of involvement in improving undergraduate education.
American Society for Microbiology
Amy Chang, Director, Education Department
Case Western Reserve University
Nancy DiIulio, Instructor of Biology; 2004 Summer Institute participant
Clark Atlanta University
Ishrat Khan, Associate Professor of Chemistry
Louisiana State University
Michelle Withers, Instructor of Biological Sciences; 2004 Summer Institute participant
Michigan State University
Diane Ebert-May, Professor of Plant Biology
Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute
Michael Hanna, Associate Professor of Biology; 2004 Summer Institute participant
Research Corporation
James M. Gentile, President
Texas Tech University
Lauren Gollahon, Associate Professor of Biological Sciences; 2004 Summer Institute participant
University of California, Berkeley
Robert J. Full, Professor of Integrative Biology; Chancellor's Professor
University of Colorado - Boulder
Jennifer K. Knight, Instructor of Molecular, Cellular and Developmental Biology; 2004 Summer Institute participant
William B. Wood (NAS), Distinguished Professor of Molecular, Cellular and Developmental Biology
University of Massachusetts - Amherst
Randy Phillis, Associate Professor of Biology
University of Michigan
Daniel J. Klionsky, Abram Sager Collegiate Professor of Life Sciences; Professor, Department of Molecular, Cellular & Developmental Biology and Department of Biological Chemistry; Research Professor, Life Sciences Institute; NSF Distinguished Teaching Scholar
University of Minnesota
Robin Wright, Associate Dean for Faculty and Academic Affairs, College of Biological Sciences; Professor of Genetics, Cell Biology and Development
University of Washington
Clarissa Dirks, Lecturer in Biology; Coordinator, UW/HHMI Programs in Science; 2004 Summer Institute participant
University of Wisconsin - Madison
Jo Handelsman, Professor of Plant Biology; HHMI Professor; Director, Wisconsin Program for Scientific Teaching
Sarah Miller Lauffer, Co-Director, Wisconsin Program for Scientific Teaching
Christine Pfund, Co-Director, Wisconsin Program for Scientific Teaching; Associate Director, DELTA: Integrating Research, Teaching, and Learning
Millard Susman, Professor Emeritus of Genetics; Vice President of Sciences, Wisconsin Academy of Sciences, Arts and Letters
Lillian Tong, Undergraduate Education Coordinator and Director of Faculty/Staff Programs, Center for Biology Education
Links:
Dr. Klionsky's Lab Page
The National Academies
Apply to next summer's Institute
