Dear Colleagues,
I would like to bring your attention to an amazing program sponsored by the Society of Toxicology (SOT) Education Committee and the Committee on Diversity Initiatives called the Domestic ToxScholar Outreach Grants.
I am currently serving as the Michigan Regional Chapter K-12 Committee Representative. I have two kids in K-12 public schools and am passionate about “getting involved.” Last fall, I saw this opportunity advertised in an email from SOT Headquarters and decided “Why not? What better way do I have to share my experiences and inform others about what I do than by visiting schools and seeing students face to face in their setting and answering their questions directly.”
So, in February of 2015, I made a visit to Olivet College, a small liberal arts school, located in south central Michigan. This college does not have a toxicology program, so I coordinated with a faculty member in their chemistry department ahead of time to pay a visit in conjunction with their seminar series sponsored by their chemistry club. My talk provided students with some history of toxicology, defined some general terms and concepts, and ended with some examples of veterinary toxicology cases that I have seen while working at the Michigan State University Diagnostic Center for Population and Animal Health. Afterward, I spent time having lunch with the students and shared stories about life in graduate school and some of my work experiences thereafter. Although I was initially uncertain as to how this visit would be received, I was pleased to have two students follow up on an offer to job shadow in my lab during the summer.
SOT seeks ambassadors to help undergraduate students learn about toxicology as a scientific discipline and career field. The Education Committee and the Committee on Diversity Initiatives have funding to support costs related to Domestic ToxScholar visits. Perhaps you graduated from a primarily undergraduate institution, have a colleague who teaches undergraduates, or are geographically close to a school that does not have a toxicology program. You can make contact with a potential host at that institution and submit an application by October 9 for reimbursement of up to $500 costs related to the visit.
Additional information, the application, and reports from other visits are accessible on Domestic ToxScholar portion of the SOT website.