University-required science courses: some students may view them as an opportunity to flex their analytical prowess, while for others, simply uttering the word “lab ” may cause nervousness. Christina Winterton, PhD, assistant teaching professor of Biology, understands this better than most. And her Mendel Science Experience course, Heredity & Human Affairs, adds a welcome flair to the study of genetics.
But fear not. This isn’t your grandmother’s biology class.
For Villanovans, MSE is a classification of thematic science courses required by the University to encourage scientific literacy in non-science majors within the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences. And throughout Heredity & Human Affairs, students focus on the social/ethical impacts of genetics, including but not limited to: genetic engineering, assisted reproduction, artificial wombs, cloning, fetal stem cells and gene therapy. Timely, engaging, and inclusive, the course aims to bring all Villanova community members together – regardless of the degree they are working toward.
“I love working with non-majors,” says Winterton, who focused on making the course interdisciplinary. “In the first month, we hit the science topics pretty hard: meiosis, fertilization, DNA replication. These are the things that you need to know so that in the second half of the semester, we can do more applications. We look at behavior, immunity, cancer, ethics, genetically modified organisms. And we get more into social aspects. But the students are able to have these very informed discussions because they’ve already had that solid foundation.”