High school students from the Engineering and Science University Magnet School (ESUMS) in New Haven culminated an eight-week summer bioinformatics program Aug. 17 when they presented their research findings at Yale School of Medicine (YSM).
The Developing Access to Bioinformatics and Science for Youth (DAISY) program is a collaborative educational effort and partnership with YSM and ESUMS that introduces high school students to bioinformatics—using computers, software, and databases to store, sort, and study complex biological data like DNA. Students also learn coding, data science, and life sciences.
The program is directed by ESUMS STEM educational leader Lataya Berry-Middleton and Nori Toyosato Bracken, a student in the Graduate Program in Pathology and Molecular Medicine at YSM. The program included six hours a week of coding with Emily Wissel, PhD, DAISY director of Bioinformatics Education for Summer 2026. She taught virtually from Munich, Germany.
Students who presented included:
- Emeka Ogugha, a member of the ESUMS Class of 2027, who has a strong passion for computing and problem solving.
- Yahya Khan, a member of the ESUMS Class of 2028, who wants to be a brain surgeon.
- Alisha Panchal, a recent ESUMS graduate, who is headed to Princeton in the fall.
- Adina Salahuddin, a recent ESUMS graduate, who is coming to Yale in the fall.
“The presentations you see today were independently conducted by the students,” Bracken says. “Dr. Wissel and I did not know what the answers would be. We gave them the tools, we taught them how to proceed and analyze data, but we had no hand in these presentations. You should be absolutely proud of all the work these students have done.”
Berry-Middleton recognizes the ESUMS students' abilities but says she’s still surprised by their work.
“I am amazingly overwhelmed. Not that I didn’t know you all had this in you, but the fact that you did this with eight weeks of your summer shows your dedication and what you desire within yourselves,” Berry-Middleton says. “And that’s all we ask as educators – that you continue to dig deep and figure out the things you like, dislike, love, and that you continue to challenge yourself to do more.”
The program runs year-round and seeks Yale faculty and students to visit ESUMS to present a demo or lecture. Last winter, Megan C. King, PhD, professor of cell biology and of molecular, cellular, and development biology, was a guest lecturer. This fall, the program is hosting Ranjit Bindra, MD, PhD, Harvey and Kate Cushing Professor of Therapeutic Radiology and professor of pathology. The program welcomes faculty from diverse scientific backgrounds to participate.