Two fellows working at the State Hygienic Laboratory used a strawberry to teach students about DNA and its role in laboratory science during three events held in eastern Iowa in November.

Rachel Greenberg, Public Health Associate Program fellow, and Drew Fayram, Emerging Infectious Diseases fellow, represented the Hygienic Laboratory at STEM Day held Nov. 12 at Linn-Mar High School in Marion; at The Magical Playground of Science STEM Festival held on Nov. 17 at Center Point-Urbana High School; and at the UI Carver College of Medicine’s STEM Institute Nov. 24 and 25.

The fellows taught students from preschool through high school how to extract DNA from a strawberry by performing simple techniques.

Rachel Greenberg (foreground in green gloves) and Drew Fayram (at back table) teach students how to extract the DNA of a strawberry during The Magical Playground of Science STEM Festival on Nov. 17 at Center Point Urbana High School. More than 100 children from preschool through middle school attended the event.

“This is a fun way to allow students to do a hands-on activity while learning about the services provided by the Hygienic Laboratory,” Greenberg said. “For the younger audiences, we gave a basic overview of what DNA is and what public health means. With the older students, we discussed how we chose our pathways to careers in public health and the wide variety of career options in this field.

“At the end of the activity, we discussed some ways DNA is used throughout the laboratory, such as in identifying strains of influenza and foodborne Illnesses,” she added.

These outreach activities introduce students to a profession they might not be aware of. According to the Association of Schools of Public Health, more than 250,000 additional public health workers are needed by 2020. One of the primary reasons for these events is to recruit students into public health fields and help prevent this forecasted shortage.