For the second year in a row, Colorado State University’s Todos Santos Center provided a collaborative learning opportunity for local researchers, faculty, and students through a guided, hands-on bioinformatics workshop in Baja California Sur, Mexico with CSU faculty.
The spring Computational Biology and Genomics Workshop was conducted by Department of Biology faculty Kim Hoke, Tai Montgomery and Dan Sloan; teaching assistant Jessica Warren; and director of the Todos Santos Center, Aines Castro Prieto.
Over five days, 12 local graduate students and researchers dove into topics covering computer programming, RNA sequencing, gene expression, microbial genomics, and population and evolutionary genomics. The theme for the week was bioinformatics.
Much like last year’s workshop, CSU’s outreach program is continuing to develop close ties with the region’s academic expertise, knowledge and wisdom. “With CSU’s growing presence in Todos Santos, this workshop is a great opportunity to develop interactions between our researchers and the local community in Mexico,” Sloan said.
The workshop was supported by the College of Natural Sciences, the Vice President for Research, the College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, and the Graduate School.
CSU hopes to continue its engagement with the Todos Santos community and the extensive possibilities for research and learning at this permanent education center.
“Overall, I think it was a great workshop where people were able to talk about science and their goals with people who came from different universities, academic backgrounds, and even countries,” Warren said.
Todos Santos Center
The Todos Santos Center is an international extension of CSU that offers opportunities that CSU students and faculty could not get elsewhere. It provides research, educational and community outreach opportunities for students to grow as global citizens. The land-grant mission gives both CSU and the local community the ability to engage in meaningful education and exchange of knowledge.
