May 31, 2005

Ann Arbor, Michigan (May 31, 2005) – Altarum Institute, the nonprofit research and innovation organization based in Ann Arbor, presented the winners of the first annual Altarum Science and Technology Education Program (ASTEP) competition on May 25, 2005.

The winning team from Ypsilanti High School, made up of Junior classmates Alex Adams, John Good, and Tim Liederbach, presented its research paper, “Improving Bioterrorism Surveillance in Michigan: The Role of Education and Communication,” at the Institute’s facility on Green Court in Ann Arbor.

“The ASTEP program was designed and launched by Altarum for two principal reasons,” said Ken Baker, President and CEO of Altarum. “First, we see ASTEP as a way to stimulate interest among high school students in pursuing careers in science and technology. We are all anxious to have a scientifically literate and motivated future workforce moving up through our local schools. Second, we see ASTEP as a means by which those students can become better acquainted with the peer-reviewed scientific research and writing process – a process they will need to know very well as they begin their academic and professional careers in these disciplines,” said Baker.

Supported in its first year with funds from Altarum and Pfizer, Altarum scientists served as mentors to a group of juniors and seniors from the Ypsilanti High School and guided them through a scientific research and writing process. Altarum first posed the research topic on the potential for the spread of infectious disease in its 2003 Annual Report. The winning research paper is to be published in Altarum’s 2004 Annual Report in addition to be being submitted to a scientific journal for publication. The winning student researchers also received scholarship awards.

The program will be repeated again next year, perhaps expanding to as many as three schools in Michigan and Virginia. “This is a cornerstone of Altarum’s commitment to investing in the communities in which we live and work,” said Baker. “We look forward to growing the program over time and, more importantly, we look forward to perhaps hiring one of these future scientists in the future.”
 

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