As a professor who feels the pressure to cover myriad topics from the current research in riboswitches to DNA repair pathways, I find that these few hours of community exposure assist me in the classroom. The students are motivated by a need to make a difference, and they realize that a better understanding of biochemical processes is necessary to combat diseases.

I am convinced that incorporating service-learning is a powerful way to bring students’ energy and motivation into the classroom. Exposing students to the murkiness of the challenges of living with diseases has a powerful impact, and it motivates them to participate in research to find better solutions.

A YouTube video created by students in the nucleic acid course.

Neena Grover (ngrover@coloradocollege.edu) is an associate professor of biochemistry and chairwoman of chemistry and biochemistry at Colorado College.