BY SHARON LEFF
Correspondent

PLUMSTED - New Egypt High School science teacher Kathy Chesmel returned to her alma mater, Princeton University, from July 9-21 to attend a summer institute that will now help her teach molecular biology to her students.

Molecular biology is the study of the structure, function, and makeup of biologically important molecules.

A group of 25 people were accepted into the two-week program, which is sponsored by the Molecular Biology Department at Princeton University and the Howard Hughes Medical Institute.

As part of the application process, Chesmel wrote an essay to describe how she would use molecular biology in her classroom.

Although Chesmel now teaches forensics, chemistry and general science, her original plan was to be a scientist, not a teacher.

"[The program at Princeton] was good for me on a lot of levels. I connected back to the scientist in me," she said. "I got to meet with other teachers who are fired up about what they do."

As part of the program, Chesmel and her colleagues conducted lab work from 8:30 a.m. until noon. They later had a chance to interact with and ask questions of a molecular biology professor over lunch. They returned to the lab until about 5:30 p.m.

In the evening, the teachers would get together and discuss curriculum and lesson plans.

"It was a blast, I recommend it and I'm looking forward to finding similar workshops in other areas," Chesmel said. "A lot of the federal grant programs at colleges do outreach programs so a lot of universities are looking for a way to bring science to students and teachers."

The university will also continue to aid Chesmel's work in the classroom. Princeton will supply her, at no charge, with all of the equipment she needs for experiments, and the university offers technical support and assistance.

The university has held the summer program for 10 years and some teachers have attended more than once.

"When I was there, there were three people who were there the first year who had come back and decided to freshen up," Chesmel said.

She said the program allows participants to see old friends and meet new people while providing refresher information on the sciences.

Although the field of molecular biology is still new to many people, Chesmel said it is a field that will influence everyone's lives.

"I think it's a good thing for teachers to try and bring it into their classrooms," she said.