Program
For immediate release
BATON ROUGE, LA – Over five intense weeks this summer, Jason Park of Baton Rouge, a student at Baton Rouge Magnet High School, used wet lab techniques and modeling software to study an enzyme from a fungal pathogen, and to design a small molecule inhibitor to protect crops from that fungus.
Park participated in the Summer Science Program (SSP), joining 35 other top science students from around the world online for academic challenge, collaboration, and personal growth. Since 1959, this unique and highly selective program has offered teenagers their first taste of hands-on, collaborative experimental research. Years and even decades later, alumni describe it as “the educational experience of a lifetime.” Most go on to earn advanced degrees and leadership roles in their chosen careers.
Park and his colleagues spent over 300 hours collecting and analyzing data in teams of three, overseen by experienced researchers. They also had the opportunity to engage with prominent guest speakers including two Nobel Laureates, physicist Eric Cornell and oncologist James Allison.
SSP is operated by an independent non-profit, in cooperation with host campuses New Mexico Tech, University of Colorado Boulder, Purdue University, and Indiana University, and academic affiliates Caltech, MIT, and Harvey Mudd College. For complete information visit summerscience.org.
Jason Park may be contacted at jasondpark03@gmail.com
Official Press Release from The Summer Science Program: SSP_2020_Jason_Park_Press_Release