UMC: School of Medicine

OUTREACH PROGRAMS

The University of Mississippi Medical Center seeks to promote the health and well being of Mississippians by training health professionals who will care for the state’s citizens, by doing research that adds to man’s knowledge about disease and health, and by treating the illnessess of patients who come to our hospitals from all of the state’s 82 counties.

As the state’s only health sciences campus, the institution also is committed to the community at large as a source for health information and science instruction.

Two programs that reflect that outreach comittment are the MiniMed School lecture series and the Base Pair science mentorship program.

MINIMED SCHOOL LECTURE SERIES AND SPEAKERS BUREAU

MiniMed School is a series of free public lectures by School of Medicine faculty.

The next series of six presentations is planned for spring, 1997, but a specific date has not been set.

Call the Division of Public Affairs at (601) 984-1000 for more information.

The public affairs office also maintains a speakers’ bureau which is a list of School of Medicine faculty who have agreed to give 30-minute presentations for local civic and community groups.

Call public affairs and ask for the MiniMed School Speakers’ Bureau brochure for a list of speakers and topics.

BASE PAIR SCIENCE MENTORSHIP PROGRAM

"Base pair" refers to the two corresponding bases of the DNA helix which form the structure of the molecule from which all live begins.

In the same way, a mentorship program called "Base Pair" teams Jackson Public School students with practicing scientists at the University of Mississippi Medical Center.

Dr. Rob Rockhold, associate professor of pharmacology and toxicology, is the program's coordinator.

Base Pair students, selected for their interest and aptitude in science, meet at UMC four afternoons a week for a semester. Each student chosen for the program is paired with a UMC scientist or "mentor" whose area of research closely matches the interest of the student. Students spend three afternoons a week working individually in the laboratory with the mentor. One afternoon is reserved for a group meeting with Dr. Rockhold where the week's laboratory experience and outside reading are discussed.

The students learn laboratory and research skills, scientific documentation and presentation. Each student is required to make a presentation on their research findings and experiences to "colleagues" at the Medical Center at semester's end. The mentors also encourage students to present abstracts at the annual Mississippi Academy of Sciences meeting.

The program actually begins first semester in the home school where teachers prepare students for the next semester at the Medical Center.

Students receive academic credit for their participation in Base Pair while they get a real taste of the life of the scientist. Base Pair encourages the pursuit of science as a career by demonstrating the challenge and intellectual excitement of biomedical science. Even if students don't make careers of science, they are given a new appreciation of how science affects the daily lives of everyone--regardless of occupation.

The UMC mentors are all scientists of the first rank who do original research and publish regularly in scholarly journals.

The number of students who participate in Base Pair is determined largely by the number of mentors who volunteer. The program will probably average 10 students annually.

Students who are interested in participating in Base Pair should contact their science teacher and principal.

MASTER OF BIOMEDICAL SCIENCE - THE PROFESSIONAL PORTAL TRACK

Introduction- The Professional Portal Track will provide a mentor-based, comprehensive program that offers a terminal degree in the biomedical sciences suitable as preparation for teaching at the community/junior college level, as advanced training for governmental and industrial positions, and as an indication of competitiveness for admission to the University of Mississippi Schools of Medicine (M.D. program), Dentistry (D.M.D. program), and Graduate Studies in the Health Sciences (Ph.D. program).




	OUTREACH PROGRAMS The University of Mississippi Medical Center seeks to promote the health and well being of Mississippians by training health professionals who will care for the state’s citizens, by doing research that adds to man’s knowledge about disease and health, and by treating the illnessess of patients who come to our hospitals from all of the state’s 82 counties. As the state’s only health sciences campus, the institution also is committed to the community at large as a source for health information and science instruction. Two programs that reflect that outreach comittment are the MiniMed School lecture series and the Base Pair science mentorship program. MINIMED SCHOOL LECTURE SERIES AND SPEAKERS BUREAU MiniMed School is a series of free public lectures by School of Medicine faculty. The next series of six presentations is planned for spring, 1997, but a specific date has not been set. Call the Division of Public Affairs at (601) 984-1000 for more information. The public affairs office also maintains a speakers’ bureau which is a list of School of Medicine faculty who have agreed to give 30-minute presentations for local civic and community groups. Call public affairs and ask for the MiniMed School Speakers’ Bureau brochure for a list of speakers and topics. BASE PAIR SCIENCE MENTORSHIP PROGRAM "Base pair" refers to the two corresponding bases of the DNA helix which form the structure of the molecule from which all live begins. In the same way, a mentorship program called "Base Pair" teams Jackson Public School students with practicing scientists at the University of Mississippi Medical Center. Dr. Rob Rockhold, associate professor of pharmacology and toxicology, is the program's coordinator. Base Pair students, selected for their interest and aptitude in science, meet at UMC four afternoons a week for a semester. Each student chosen for the program is paired with a UMC scientist or "mentor" whose area of research closely matches the interest of the student. Students spend three afternoons a week working individually in the laboratory with the mentor. One afternoon is reserved for a group meeting with Dr. Rockhold where the week's laboratory experience and outside reading are discussed. The students learn laboratory and research skills, scientific documentation and presentation. Each student is required to make a presentation on their research findings and experiences to "colleagues" at the Medical Center at semester's end. The mentors also encourage students to present abstracts at the annual Mississippi Academy of Sciences meeting. The program actually begins first semester in the home school where teachers prepare students for the next semester at the Medical Center. Students receive academic credit for their participation in Base Pair while they get a real taste of the life of the scientist. Base Pair encourages the pursuit of science as a career by demonstrating the challenge and intellectual excitement of biomedical science. Even if students don't make careers of science, they are given a new appreciation of how science affects the daily lives of everyone--regardless of occupation. The UMC mentors are all scientists of the first rank who do original research and publish regularly in scholarly journals. The number of students who participate in Base Pair is determined largely by the number of mentors who volunteer. The program will probably average 10 students annually. Students who are interested in participating in Base Pair should contact their science teacher and principal. MASTER OF BIOMEDICAL SCIENCE - THE PROFESSIONAL PORTAL TRACK Introduction- The Professional Portal Track will provide a mentor-based, comprehensive program that offers a terminal degree in the biomedical sciences suitable as preparation for teaching at the community/junior college level, as advanced training for governmental and industrial positions, and as an indication of competitiveness for admission to the University of Mississippi Schools of Medicine (M.D. program), Dentistry (D.M.D. program), and Graduate Studies in the Health Sciences (Ph.D. program).