
As part of the current SOT Strategic Plan to increase the Society’s influence through science communication, SOT has partnered with the North Carolina Association for Biomedical Research (NCABR) to create the North Carolina Higher Education Faculty and Mentor Network to develop a two-year outreach program to undergraduate science educators in North Carolina (NC).
Program Objectives
- To increase the usage of curriculum materials in NC undergraduate science courses that address the importance and meaning of toxicology.
- To increase NC undergraduate student usage of SOT educational and mentoring resources.
- To increase NC undergraduate student involvement in local and national SOT programs.
- To increase awareness of toxicology as a career opportunity among undergraduate educators and students.
Program Resources
Among the activities of the network are several webinars of broad interest to faculty that provide information about toxicology and opportunities for undergraduates.
Undergraduate Toxicology Curriculum Webinar Series
Facilitators: Joshua Gray and Mindy Reynolds (co-facilitator for each topic is listed below)
- An Introduction to the Core Concepts of Toxicology—Chris Curran
Toxicology Core Concepts
- A Focus on Evolution—Jed Goldstone
- Biological Information—Toxicology and the Genome—Alicia Timme-Laragy
- Pathways and Transformations of Toxicants, from Dose-Response to ADME—Kristine Willett
- Systems Toxicology—Eva Oberdorster
- Risk Assessment—Annie Jarabek and George Woodall
- A Culmination of Core Concepts to Teach Toxicology—Nimrat Obhi
How to Get Involved
If you teach undergraduate students in NC, or are a NC toxicologist with a desire to promote toxicology in undergraduate education, and are interested in joining the network, please contact NCABR.
Partners
NCABR has a long history of successful outreach to K–12 educators and students to foster appreciation of and interest in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) subjects. The SOT involvement in this new outreach effort includes coordination with the SOT NC Regional Chapter (NCSOT) and the SOT Faculty United for Toxicology Recruitment and Education (FUTURE) Committee and builds on the efforts of the SOT Undergraduate Consortium Task Force. Using the many educational resources of SOT, key principles of toxicology will be infused into the undergraduate curriculum in North Carolina institutions.
Project Management
The project is managed by Suzanne Wilkison, NCABR President, and Virginia Crisp, NCABR Coordinator, with input from the North Carolina Higher Education Faculty and Mentor Network Leadership Council. Leadership Council members are from NCABR, NCSOT, the US Environmental Protection Agency, the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, faculty from North Carolina undergraduate institutions, and several SOT members, including representation from the Undergraduate Consortium Task Force and FUTURE.