The Ben & Catherine Ivy Foundation funds training
opportunities focused on brain tumors and neuroscience for future
Arizona researchers
May 1, 2012 - The Arizona-based Ben & Catherine Ivy Foundation
will fund a $45,000 pilot internship program this summer and fall
at the Translational Genomics Research Foundation (TGen).
The Ben & Catherine Ivy Foundation and TGen developed the Ivy
Neurological Sciences Internship Program to inspire high school and
undergraduate college students to pursue careers in bioscience,
particularly in the areas of brain tumor research, and
neuroscience.
The program will provide hands-on biomedical research under the
mentorship of TGen investigators.
"Mentor-intern relationships play a pivotal role in developing and
driving a student's career choice," said Catherine Ivy, President
of The Ben & Catherine Ivy Foundation.
"It is my hope that the Ivy Neurological Sciences Internship
Program will inspire additional research into the neurosciences and
that these students will become the next generation of leaders in
the field."
TGen will select five students for the pilot program, which starts
in June. Three high-school students will participate in a 10-week
summer program, and two undergraduate students will be selected for
extended 20-week internships that will continue into the fall,
enabling a more in-depth research experience.
TGen understands that the development of a local, knowledge-based
workforce depends on educating and training talented students
today.
"To fully achieve our mission, we must make a significant
investment in our area schools and local communities," said TGen
President, Dr. Jeffrey Trent. "The Ivy Program provides the access
to help educate students on the impact genomics has on their lives
in terms of a career in the biomedical sciences."
By design, the program immerses interns in the translational
process, which marries the discovery process with clinical care to
more rapidly transform research into new treatments for
patients.
"Students in the program gain a greater understanding of the
connection between laboratory research results and their
application toward patient care. In doing so, they view first-hand
the continuum from the lab bench to the patient bedside and
clinical implementation," said Dr. Candice Nulsen, Director of
TGen's Office of Science Education and Outreach.
Additional components of the internship program include medical
rounds, drug development, lectures, and opportunities for students
to present their scientific findings. For more information, please
contact: Dr. Candice Nulsen, Ph.D., Director of TGen's Science
Education and Outreach, at [email protected] or 602-343-8466.
About The Ben & Catherine Ivy Foundation
The Ben & Catherine Ivy Foundation, based in Scottsdale,
Ariz., was formed in 2005, when Ben Ivy lost his battle with
glioblastoma multiforme (GBM). Since then, the Foundation has
contributed more than $50 million to research in gliomas within the
United States and Canada, with the goal of better diagnostics and
treatments that offer long-term survival and a high quality of life
for patients with brain tumors. The Ben & Catherine Ivy
Foundation is the largest privately funded foundation of its kind
in the United States. For more information, visit
http://www.ivyfoundation.org. Connect with The Ben &
Catherine Ivy Foundation on Facebook at
http://www.facebook.com/IvyFoundation and Twitter
@IvyFoundation.