‘Welcome to Clark. Let’s do some science’

By ClarkNow Staff

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Professor Don Spratt introduces local high school students to experiments in biochemistry

It might have been spring break for Clark students last week, but not for Professor Don Spratt of the Gustaf H. Carlson School of Chemistry and Biochemistry. Spratt opened the school’s labs to nearly 80 advanced biology and biotechnology students from three local high schools, guiding them in college-level experiments.

Professor Don Spratt shows a student from North High School how to grind cellular material with a mortar and pestle.
Professor Don Spratt shows a student from North High School how to grind jellyfish cells with a mortar and pestle, releasing the cells’ proteins, a crucial step toward isolating and purifying them for further study.
North High School students examine a tube of liquid.
North High School students measure the liquid sample containing cells and their proteins before transferring it to a centerfuge. Biologists and biochemists use the device to spin samples at high speeds, isolating and purifying proteins.

“The reason why we do this is to make students feel like they are welcome on campus, and to let students feel that they can do science as well. The whole MO is to just say, ‘Welcome to Clark. Let’s do some science,’ ” Spratt told the Worcester Telegram and Gazette.

North High School students conduct experiments in the lab.
Above, North students — accompanied by their teachers, including Clark alumnus Rick Howarth, chair of the school’s science department, on March 3 — work with cellular material from jellyfish. They used a vortex mixer to quickly spin and break up clumps of cells, “resuspending” them as single cells floating in liquid. “Each group had a different-colored protein,” Spratt said. Students got the taste of the foundational research happening in biochemistry labs, where scientists seek to understand protein structure and functionality, with the goal of developing new drugs to fight cancer, Alzheimer’s, and other human diseases.

Two students from North High School use a mortar to grind cellular material.
Students from North High School use a mortar to grind up cells with sand and break the cells’ membranes, releasing proteins.

Professor Don Spratt talks to North High School students before they conduct experiments in the lab.
Professor Don Spratt talks to North High School students before they conduct experiments in the lab on March 3. During three more days of spring break week, he welcomed another group of students from North, along with others from Eagle Hill School in Hardwick and Nipmuc Regional High School in Upton. The Nipmuc Regional students were accompanied by their teacher, Clark alumnus James Gorman.

Last fall, New England Biolabs, a life sciences company based in Ipswich, Massachusetts, presented Spratt with its Passion in Science Award for launching Clark’s STEM Outreach Program, which aims to inspire high school students to pursue careers in science, technology, engineering, and math. Since coming to Clark in 2015, he has invited hundreds of students from local high schools into his lab for tours, workshops, and research experiences. Spratt also has directed Clark’s STEM Summer Undergraduate Research Opportunities, which, he says, is evolving into an academic year program.

“The point is, we want to improve scientific literacy, help students get interested in biotech, and help strengthen Massachusetts’ biotech economy,” Spratt said. “We want students to feel like science is a viable career path for them. And this is a great opportunity to get their hands on and actually experience what it’s like to be on a university campus before they actually register at a school.”

In May and June, Spratt will welcome more students and their teachers from 10 more schools — University Park Campus School, Worcester Technical High School, South High Community School, Doherty Memorial High School, and Burncoat High School, all in Worcester; Leicester High School in Leicester; David Prouty High School in Spencer; Montachusett Regional Vocational High School in Fitchburg; Grafton High School in Grafton; and Algonquin Regional High School in Northborough.

Photos by Steven King, University Photographer

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