PRCCEH hosted the fourth cohort of the Academy for Environmental Exposure Reduction (AEER) this Spring. Twelve students from different high schools across Philadelphia were given the opportunity to study environmental exposures to endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDCs) for eight weeks.
The students learned about research being conducted on PFAS, vaping chemicals and BPA in products, environmental justice, and how to choose safer personal care products. They received lectures from Penn researchers such as PRCCEH Director Rebecca Simmons, MD; Lisa Bottalico, PhD; and George Gerton, PhD. The students also had the opportunity to tour a research lab on Penn’s campus. At the end of the program, AEER students translated the information they learned into video projects that bring awareness to EDC exposure and prevention to share with their classmates and peers.
Mikayla White, Translation Program Coordinator helped lead the program and interacted with the students each week, “the students put in a lot of effort and were excited to learn. I think that this is evidenced by the quality of the videos they created. They really turned out great and the students should be proud of themselves.”
On May 2nd, students attended the last session of AEER hosted at the Penn Museum and were joined by their family and friends to celebrate their accomplishments in the program. The students presented their video projects which they will disseminate at their respective schools in the coming weeks. Through AEER, four students were accepted to the OER Summer Internship program and will be working with Penn faculty this summer, learning basic laboratory skills and exploring clinical experiences.
