{"id":236852,"date":"2026-07-01T10:15:20","date_gmt":"2026-07-01T20:15:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/?p=236852"},"modified":"2026-08-03T14:33:05","modified_gmt":"2026-08-04T00:33:05","slug":"miller-biomed-poster-award","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/2026\/07\/01\/miller-biomed-poster-award\/","title":{"rendered":"National genomics education award recognizes UH<\/abbr> graduate student"},"content":{"rendered":"Reading time: <\/span> 2<\/span> minutes<\/span><\/span>
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Chelsea Miller with her award-winning poster and training model.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

University of Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span> at M\u0101noa’s Chelsea Miller has received national recognition for expanding access to hands-on genomics education.<\/p>\n

Miller, a PhD<\/abbr> student in the Department of Molecular Biosciences and Bioengineering in the College of Tropical Agriculture and Human Resources<\/a> (CTAHR<\/abbr>), earned the Outstanding Poster Award at the National IDeA<\/abbr> Symposium of Biomedical Research Excellence<\/a> (NISBRE<\/abbr>), held June 17 in North Bethesda, Maryland.<\/p>\n

Breaking barriers in science education<\/h2>\n

Her award-winning poster, “Genome on the Go: Decentralizing Molecular Biology Education through Portable Genomics Tools and Near-Peer Mentorship,” highlights a training model designed to reduce barriers to advanced laboratory instruction for students in Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span> and other geographically isolated regions.<\/p>\n

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Chelsea Miller and Jon-Paul Bingham<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Developed through the Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span> IDeA<\/abbr> Network of Biomedical Research Excellence<\/a> (Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span> INBRE<\/abbr>) program with support from U.S.<\/abbr> Department of Agriculture workforce development initiatives, the project brings portable DNA<\/abbr> sequencing tools and graduate student mentors directly to learners, enabling a full “sample-to-sequence” workflow in classroom and field settings.<\/p>\n

Over the past year, Miller and her team conducted 11 workshops across Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span>, the Pacific and the continental U.S.<\/abbr>, training 72 participants using Bento Lab and Oxford Nanopore technologies.<\/p>\n

Strengthening biomedical workforce development<\/h2>\n

The approach helps prepare the next generation of biomedical workforce while giving students access to modern molecular biology techniques typically limited to well-equipped research laboratories.<\/p>\n

“This award reflects the incredible efforts of our graduate student instructors and the vision of making genomics accessible to every student, regardless of location,” said Jon-Paul Bingham, Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span> INBRE<\/abbr> PATHways director and co-author of the project.<\/p>\n

Miller was one of three Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span> INBRE<\/abbr>-affiliated researchers recognized at the biennial NISBRE<\/abbr> meeting, which highlights national research and training supported through the IDeA<\/abbr> program. Also honored were Li Tao, professor at the UH<\/abbr> Hilo<\/a>, who received the Outstanding Mentorship and Teaching Award, and Natalie Graham, assistant professor at UH<\/abbr> Hilo, who earned the Scientific Merit Award.<\/p>\n

Read more at JABSOM<\/abbr><\/a>.<\/p>\n

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Li Tao, Natalie Graham and Chelsea Miller.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Chelsea Miller’s innovative training program expands hands-on genomics education.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":16,"featured_media":236859,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[29],"tags":[1040,212,598,31,1467,1363,1010,660,14,9,603],"class_list":["post-236852","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-people","tag-biomedical-science","tag-college-of-tropical-agriculture-and-human-resilience","tag-faculty-recognition","tag-john-a-burns-school-of-medicine","tag-manoa-excellence-in-research","tag-manoa-research","tag-molecular-biosciences-and-bioengineering","tag-student-recognition","tag-uh-hilo","tag-uh-manoa","tag-workforce-development","entry","has-media"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t