Chair's Message
Like other faculty responding to the COVID-19 pandemic, I spent the last weeks of the spring semester teaching courses from home, worrying about students and colleagues, and participating in what seemed like an endless procession of administrative Zoom meetings. Now, we are teaching summer courses online and preparing for fall, whether online or in person.
When Temple University Hospital asked for extra personal protective equipment, our department delivered more than 5,000 lab coats, goggles, a case of N95 masks and nearly 50,000 pairs of gloves. Meanwhile, instructional laboratories are sequentially undergoing renovations and the Post Baccalaureate Pre-Health Program moved into remodeled space in the Bio-Life Building. The biology and neuroscience undergraduate programs remain robust, with students increasingly involved in advanced research projects with our faculty.
In addition, this fall we are launching a new undergraduate major in genomic medicine. We have welcomed new graduate students into the Professional Science Master's programs (biotechnology, bioinformatics, bioinnovation) and PhD students into biology and the recently established bioinformatics interdisciplinary program.
Our faculty continue to conduct well-funded, cutting-edge research around the world. Their dedication to teaching and determined response to the sudden challenge of online instruction continues to encourage and inspire me.
Robert Sanders
Professor and Chair