The Center will focus on instituting new programs, including funding 20 undergraduate research fellowships during the next few summers and creating workshops on molecular research techniques. However, these programs will not be limited to the collegiate level. The Center will attempt to reach out to local schools to incorporate biotechnology into the classroom environment.
Associate Professor of Biological Sciences Christine White-Ziegler, a member of the Center's faculty steering committee, clearly defined the aims of the program in Smith College's press release. "Experience with sophisticated instrumentation is fundamental to the curriculum as students work with faculty on increasingly complex research questions and report results to professional audiences," she said. "The Center for Molecular Biosciences will bring together the expertise, equipment and technical support needed to facilitate interdisciplinary teaching and research."
Wen Li, Smith's interim director of the Center, is leading the project. Her new responsibilities will include maintenance of the technology and the training of those who will make use of the new equipment. In the Center, students and staff will be able to conduct experiments involving a variety of molecular genetics techniques, including DNA sequencing, DNA fingerprinting and microarrays, a useful cutting-edge technology which involves the measurement of gene expression.
White-Ziegler emphasized the importance of the type of approach the Center will be taking. "Significantly, we are finding that a molecular approach to questions initiated or identified by faculty members in one traditional discipline are best answered through a collaborative approach and by using techniques common to faculty across disciplines," she said in the Smith news release. In addition to White-Ziegler, Stylianos Scordilis, professor of biological sciences, and Steven Williams, the Gates professor of biological sciences, made up the steering committee.