Mission Statement

The Education Committee serves pre-college, college-level and post-baccalaureate students and educators as well as the general public.  The Committee is committed to increasing the awareness of its served populations of current topics and careers in the field of Microbiology.  The goals are to encourage students to pursue Microbiology as a course of study, provide opportunities for college educators to network with their peers and share ideas and resources, and heighten the awareness of the general public in the areas of Microbiology and public health.

At the pre-college level, this awareness is influenced and heightened by:

¨     Mentoring students who are designing and performing Science Fair experiments

¨     Judging at Regional and National Science Fairs

¨     Providing speakers for pre-college programs

¨     Designing and facilitating Teacher Workshops

¨     Marketing of the Committee’s Pre-college Microbiology Manual

¨     Providing site tours of educational and industrial research facilities

¨     Designing Branch educational programs and providing speakers on current topics relevant to the target groups

¨     Collaborating with other Branches to design joint programs which address needs of the target audience

At the college and post-baccalaureate level, this awareness is influenced and heightened by:

¨     Providing speakers to address classes and/or science clubs

¨     Designing and facilitating Teacher Education Workshops

¨     Providing site tours of educational and industrial research facilities

¨     Designing Branch educational programs and providing speakers on current topics relevant to the target groups

¨     Collaborating with other Branches to design joint programs which address needs of the target audience

¨     Providing ongoing opportunities for educators to network by sharing ideas informally at regularly scheduled meetings

As part of the community outreach, this awareness is influenced and heightened by:

¨     Providing speakers to address current issues in the realm of public health and/or microbiology which may impact the public at large

¨     Designing programs to heighten awareness of the importance of good hygiene

¨     Providing a forum to educate the public on the beneficial aspects of microorganisms

¨     Informing various community and service groups about the scope of the field of Microbiology