May 2025 Newsletter

This month, we are gearing up for an exciting summer. Gill is continuing her series of community programs in libraries across Connecticut. With the school year winding down, our professional development work is heating up. Gill and Robin will be teaming up with the Jackson Lab for our 11th year of Teaching the Genome Generation educator professional development workshops at the end of June and will be hosting our own virtual workshop with PGED’s personal genetics curriculum in July (stay tuned for more details!). And Marnie will be giving a keynote at the National Genomics Education Partnership (GEP) Faculty Workshop. 

Although we have much to look forward to on the horizon, our team has faced many challenges this month. Like many others, the National Science Foundation has terminated two of our projects. Now more than ever, PGED is seeking support to help us stay afloat and continue our work during this challenging time. Here are three ways you can make a difference:

💝 1. Make a Donation

Everything PGED creates, delivers, and shares online—from our curriculum materials to videos, discussion tools, and community programming—is offered free of charge. By donating to PGED, you are helping us serve students, teachers, and communities. 

💬 2. Share Your Story

Has PGED’s work sparked something special for you? Stories have the power to inspire others to participate in and support this work, and we need this now more than ever. Help us tell the story of PGED’s impact. 

📣 3. Amplify Our Work

Our free educational resources open the door to informative, accessible, and engaging conversations about genetics.  Want to help others find PGED? We’ve made it easy with our new Media Kit, available in our Resource Hub. Download social media graphics, images, sample posts, and an email template to share with your family, friends, and colleagues.

• June 4 – Options Employment & Educational Services Classroom Visit (Hartford, CT)
• June 12 – Introduction to Personal Genetics at the Hall Memorial Library (Ellington, CT)
• June 23 – Teaching the Genome Generation Teacher Professional Development Workshops (ONLINE)
• June 23 – 2025 National Genomics Education Partnership (GEP) Faculty Workshop (ONLINE)
• June 26 – Introduction to Personal Genetics at the Manchester Public Library, Whiton Branch (Manchester, CT)
• June 27 – Teaching the Genome Generation Teacher Professional Development Workshops (ONLINE)

PGED’s Community Spotlight series showcases some of the remarkable people we’ve connected with through our mission to expand education and dialogue about genetics, health, and society.

Article: “We’re not trying to create a species from ancient DNA scraps”: One of Earth’s rarest animals could be brought back from the edge of extinction (BBC Wildlife Magazine). “It’s all thanks to the creature’s cells being frozen over a decade ago, as part of a process called biobanking.”

Article: Baby Is Healed With World’s First Personalized Gene-Editing Treatment (The New York Times). “The technique used on a 9½-month-old boy with a rare condition has the potential to help people with thousands of other uncommon genetic diseases.”

Article: Regeneron to Buy 23andMe Out of Bankruptcy for $256 Million (The Wall Street Journal). “The DNA testing company would sell for a fraction of its peak valuation of $6 billion to a biotech aiming to use its data troves for drug research.”

Article: Powerful CRISPR system inserts whole gene into human DNA (Nature News). “‘Directed’ evolution in the laboratory creates an editing tool that outperforms classic CRISPR systems.”

Article: Sperm from cancer-risk donor used to conceive at least 67 children across Europe (The Guardian). “Case of man carrying rare genetic variant fuels calls for limit on number of children that can be fathered by one donor.”

Article: Bedbugs May Be the First Urban Pest (Science). “A new genomic study published today in Biology Letters suggests that bedbugs—the blood-feeding insects that haunt our hotel stays—were the first urban pests, proving an itchy menace for tens of thousands of years.”

Our team loves creating resources that make an impact in classrooms, community spaces, and beyond. Consider giving a gift to show some love for PGED resources in our Resource Hub.

All donations help keep our resources freely available online. We are grateful for your generosity.

PGED is always looking for opportunities to engage with new audiences. Would you like to host a group to talk about the implications of personal genetics? What about a professional development workshop for teachers in your district?

We have staff in Massachusetts, Connecticut, Colorado, and Washington, DC – and we are willing to travel when possible. Contact us to find out about scheduling an event in your area!