CHOC Chief Scientific Officer Dr. Terence Sanger has been honored by University Lab Partners (ULP) for his contributions to STEM education and for a program he helped establish to address critical pediatric healthcare challenges.
ULP, a nonprofit organization founded through the Beall Family Foundation at UC Irvine’s Beall Applied Innovation, recognized Dr. Sanger at its 2024 Ignite Gala, an event to foster community support for med-tech, biotech, research, and healthcare workforce development, as well as innovative educational programs.
In 2020, ULP and CHOC Research launched the Medical Innovation, Research, and Entrepreneurship (MIRE) program to equip the next generation of STEM leaders with the multidisciplinary skills essential for success in the biotech and med-tech entrepreneurial sectors.
Under Dr. Sanger’s guidance, MIRE has allowed students to engage directly with Orange County leaders in medicine, pediatrics, research, data science, and law. The students are assigned project-based coursework and come up with ideas to address real-world unmet clinical needs in pediatric care.
“We are incredibly grateful for the support of our industry partners, collaborators, clinicians, educators and strategic advisors,” Dr. Sanger said at the Sept. 14, 2014, gala, where ULP presented him with the Excellence Award. “Together, we are shaping the future of our students and, by extension, the fields of science, technology, engineering, pediatric medicine, and business.”
MIRE accomplishments
MIRE aims to integrate medical and engineering disciplines to devise optimal healthcare solutions.
Since 2020, more than 2,000 high school students have completed MIRE educational programs. There have been 11 MIRE cohorts and nearly two dozen mentors and speakers, many from CHOC.
To date, MIRE has served 12 school districts in Orange County with a total of 58 high schools participating.
More than 15 MIRE graduates have gone on to attend UC schools.
Other honorees
The evening also celebrated the accomplishments of over 2,000 CHOC ULP MIRE students and guests including George Tolomiczenko, PhD, MBA, MPH and former students Alexa Hudnut, PhD, of Illumina, and Li Zhou, PhD, formerly with Medtronic and now with Dexcom.
Additionally, 150 attendees recognized John Gerace for his service as a UCI Foundation trustee and for his contributions to the Iacocca Family. Attendees also welcomed Michelle Digman, PhD, the new chair of the Department of Biomedical Engineering at UCI, and celebrated UCI’s renewal of the Clinical and Translational Science Institute (CTSI) alongside the achievements of students from The Sanger Lab.
Dr. Sanger will be speaking at the OC Impact Conference scheduled for Nov. 6, 2024.
