On September 9, 2024, Amgen Biotech Experience (ABE) celebrated an impressive milestone: reaching one million high school students from 16 countries around the world. This innovative educational program inspires high school students to embrace biotechnology and the fascinating world of science. In the Netherlands, the ‘Reizende DNA-Labs’ program, supported by the Amgen Foundation, plays a crucial role in ABE’s success. We spoke with Melanie Rosenhart, the program manager of ‘Reizende DNA-Labs’, about the impact of this program. She also shares her plans for the future and the experiences of students and teachers who have been involved.
What are the ‘Reizende DNA-Labs’?
‘Reizende DNA-Labs’ was founded in 2006 with a clear goal in mind: to give high school students a first glimpse into the exciting world of science. According to Melanie Rosenhart, the inspiration for this program was simple but powerful: “We wanted to get students excited about a career in science,” she says. “To do that, we developed special lab lessons for classrooms. These labs are taken by students from different universities given and they bring, by means of a two to three hours durational practical, modern DNA research from various perspectives in the classroom.”
The collaboration with Amgen Biotech Experience
Since the collaboration with Amgen Biotech Experience began in 2016, the program has seen significant growth. “The partnership with ABE not only allowed us to continue our existing program, but also to expand it with the ABE teaching kit ‘Do you taste PTC?’2 which can now be picked-up in four locations in the Netherlands,” Melanie explains. This has allowed ‘Reizende DNA-Labs’ to further expand their reach and impact, with the goal of introducing even more students to the world of biotechnology.
The program consists of two main components: the DNA labs themselves, where students are immersed in various themes such as health, environment, ethics, nutrition and forensic research through practical lessons. In addition, the ABE teaching kit ‘Do you taste PTC?'. This teaching kit enables those teachers to independently perform biotechnology experiments in the classroom with the supplied equipment and materials. "The combination of these two components makes the program so powerful," says Melanie.
A powerful global network
What Melanie values most about the ABE program is the close network. “The ABE ‘community’ is a warm team where people want to learn from each other and help each other. Whether this is during a physical meeting or virtually, everyone is always willing to help you,” Melanie says enthusiastically. The feedback from teachers is also overwhelmingly positive, with many of them indicating that their students are very enthusiastic about the lessons: “They can now put the abstract theory, which they often find difficult, into a context.” In addition to the practical lessons, Amgen also sponsors LabXchange, a platform where students, but also teachers, can do online practicals and experiments. This is a good addition to the lessons, according to Melanie.
Popular topics and skills
One of the key elements of the ‘Reizende DNA-Labs’ program is learning essential laboratory skills, such as micro pipetting, PCR3 and gel electrophoresis. These skills are used in both the labs and the ABE Teaching Kit and are extremely popular with students. Melanie emphasizes that these skills provide a solid foundation for a career in biotechnology. “When students master these skills, they can really get a glimpse into the science of biotechnology,” she explains.
An example of this is the 3-day masterclass in which students learn how to produce insulin for diabetes patients. This hands-on experience not only gives them a good understanding of the techniques, but also a deeper insight into their real-world applications. Students report that they experience the practicum as "more fun than expected", and especially appreciate the fact that they can apply the theoretical knowledge and see the results of their work immediately.
The impact of ‘Reizende DNA Labs’
Since the inception of ‘Reizende DNA-Labs’, the program has reached nearly 270,000 students. Thanks to the partnership with ABE, nearly 47,000 students have been involved in the program since 2016 alone. In addition, nearly 5,000 students and 150 unique teachers have used the ABE teaching kit. “These numbers are confirmation for us that we are on the right track,” says Melanie.
The impact is not only measured in numbers, but also in the way students are inspired and motivated. “It’s great to see students get excited about science and biotechnology,” says Melanie. “They learn skills that they can use in their future careers, and they get a better understanding of how science works in practice.”
Future plans and expansion
With an eye on the future, ‘Reizende DNA-Labs’ is developing a new ABE lesson kit, especially for vmbo. The current lesson kit is mainly aimed at havo/vwo students, but with the new vmbo lesson kit the program hopes to introduce even more students to science and biotechnology. “We want to make science and biotechnology accessible to all students, regardless of their educational level,” says Melanie.
In addition, there is a strong desire to expand the current teaching kit to the south of the Netherlands, because schools in Belgium have also shown interest. “We hope to expand our new teaching kit to more locations in the future,” Melanie adds.
The Amgen Foundation's role in the future
The Amgen Foundation plays a critical role in the continuation and expansion of the Reizende DNA-Labs program. “With the support of the Amgen Foundation, we are able to expose many more students and their teachers to biotechnology,” Melanie explains. “Students learn skills and techniques that are not commonly available in the classroom, and this opens doors to new opportunities and careers.”
In addition, the Amgen Foundation offers teachers the opportunity to further develop themselves by participating in the ABE Master Teacher Fellowship program. “This is a great way for teachers to further develop themselves, develop teaching materials that are available to everyone/all students and exchange knowledge with colleagues around the world,” says Melanie.
Conclusion
The Reizende DNA-Labs Program, supported by Amgen Biotech Experience and the Amgen Foundation, is making a lasting impact and inspiring the next generation of scientists and biotechnologists. As we celebrate the milestone of the millionth student worldwide, the journey is far from over and the program continues to grow and evolve. Thanks to the dedication of people like Melanie Rosenhart and the support of the Amgen Foundation, we continue to strive for a future where science is accessible and fascinating to all students.
For more information about the ‘Reizende DNA-Labs’ program and how to get involved, visit http://www.dnalabs.nl/ and for more information about the Amgen Foundation, visit https://www.amgen.nl/maatschappelijke-verantwoordelijkheid/amgen-foundation. Also watch the video below for an impression:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eBduksLBolY