Over spring break I was given a very special opportunity to teach neuroscience labs at the Mississippi School for Mathematics and Science, my alma mater. Ever since graduating from there I have wanted to go back and share my experiences with students. I wanted to give them a glimpse of what undergraduate research looks like and why they should explore it.MSMS is a public residential high school for academically gifted juniors and seniors. Students live on campus while taking all honors, AP, or dual-credit classes, many of which are not usually offered at other public schools. MSMS also has very strong English, Arts, and History departments, especially their award-winning “Tales from the Crypt” research class and performances. For many students, MSMS is a beacon of light. It is the most diverse high school in Mississippi, a family of students from all ethnic and socio-economic backgrounds. It is a chance for young scholars to truly challenge themselves and discover what they are passionate about pursuing in college and beyond.
Mrs. Kaye Truitt and Dr. Bill Odom were thrilled to open the doors of their classrooms. For two of the shorter lecture classes, I talked about my research in Dr. Gwen King’s lab. I explained why we study an animal model of premature aging, why adult neurogenesis is important to learning and memory, and how we study this in brain tissue and behavioral analysis. They were able to look at real mouse brains and brain slides from my research project and observe how neurons change during the process of adult neurogenesis.
The lab classes were even more hands-on and exciting. Here I was able to show them how to stain brain slices for cell bodies using a Nissl stain. Each student learned how to mount tissue on slides, paying careful attention to the subfields in the brain and learned how to identify the hippocampus. The students seemed to be very engaged in the lab and I was asked many questions about college, research, neuroscience, and graduate school. The best part about this experience was that they were able to conduct a real experiment; one that my lab does on a frequent basis.I am hoping that this will lead to future collaborations between my lab at UAB and MSMS. I think more high school students would be interested in pursuing research if they were able to see their options and gain more hands-on experiences. MSMS does a great job of providing research and mentorship opportunities for students. Sharing my research with enthusiastic students was one of the most rewarding parts of my undergraduate career. I have a passion for mentorship and I look forward to teaching more in graduate school.
