Stem Cell Institute Predoctoral Infuse Award Program Activities are Underway

The Predoctoral Infuse Awards program was initiated by the Stem Cell Institute in May 2021. The program aims to create a community of PhD trainees and faculty who meet regularly to discuss ongoing science and to instruct trainees about stem cell biology and regeneration topics and techniques. The trainees all come from SCI faculty member’s labs and each will give a seminar about their research to the group. This seminar series started in the Fall of 2021 and will continue throughout 2022. In addition to presenting a seminar, trainees will participate in workshops to learn specific techniques and to further craft their presentation skills. The program will offer two workshops in the upcoming months.

The first workshop will be organized by SCI faculty member, Branden Moriarity, and Brian Ruis of the University of Minnesota’s Genome Engineering Shared Resource. They will demonstrate how to design and perform a genome engineering experiment using CRISPR through lectures and hands-on experience.

The second workshop is a public speaking workshop offered by a local improv theater and public speaking expert who has experience teaching public speaking to academics. This workshop will include 4 sessions of 60-90 minutes each in June. Topics covered include stage presence, presenting with the aid of slides, interaction with the audience, and answering questions.  Additional workshops are planned for the next academic year.