DISCOVER NOW: TRAINING NEW STAN-X PARTNERS

The fourth annual DISCOVER NOW teaching academy ran in 2022 from June 27-July 1 and July 11-15. As in recent years, instruction in the first week was conducted online, and in the second - thanks to the Head of School, Steve Murray, and the Lawrenceville Science Department - was 'in person' on the beautiful campus of the Lawrenceville School in New Jersey. Instructors for this course included Lutz Kockel, Anne Rankin (Exeter), and Elizabeth Fox and Nicole Lantz (Lawrenceville). The first week covered curricular elements, and content for the participants to develop and teach the 'core' Stan-X course involving transposon mutagenesis and 'enhancer trap' genetic modification to generate novel fruit fly stains. During the week, Discover Now participants networked and learned about teaching practices at other Stan-X partner schools.

In the second week, practical elements of running a Stan-X course were taught in lab space at Lawrenceville. This second week was punctuated by outings to local sites, including the working farm on the Lawrenceville campus, and nearby eating establishments. Participants included instructors from several schools, including Westtown (Malvern, PA), Mercy School (Rochester, NY), Chapin School (NY, NY), Commack High School (Long Island, NY) Harvard-Westlake (Los Angeles, CA) and The Hotchkiss School (Lakeville, CT).