Boston University Medical Campus
CityLab

Meet Faculty/Staff

CityLab is…

Director
Research Assistant Professor, Dept. of Biochemistry
Clinical Assistant Professor, School of Education

Don DeRosa has been at CityLab since the program began in 1992. His responsibilities include the curriculum development, program design, teaching, staff development and management of the CityLab MobileLab.

Don has several years of teaching experience at both the pre-college and college level. Since 1984, he has taught biology, chemistry and earth science to students in grades 7-12, Anatomy and Physiology at Mass Bay Community College and science education courses at Bridgewater State College. He has been a member of the Microcosmos curriculum development team at Boston University since 1989. Don has also presented many teacher workshops in biotech education in both the U.S. and Europe. In addition to his responsibilities at CityLab, he has an appointment at the School of Education where he teaches methods courses in science education.

Don has a B.S. in Biology from the University of Vermont, an M.Div. from St. John’s Seminary, an M.A.T. in Science Education and an Ed.D. in Curriculum and Teaching from Boston University.

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Administrator

Patty comes to CityLab with a wealth of experience. As past executive director of the Hyde Community Center, and as past member of the Newton School Committee, she is instrumental in the smooth operation of CityLab.

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CityLab Educator

Meaghan graduated with a B.S in biology from Hamilton College and a M.Sc. in marine biology from Northeastern University.  Prior to joining the CityLab team, Meaghan completed her thesis at the New England Aquarium, studying the effects of antioxidants on the prevalence of shell disease in juvenile American lobsters.   Meaghan became an Aquarium Educator because she was hooked by the hands-on teaching environment.  Concurrently, she taught biology, laboratory courses with undergraduate students at Northeastern University.  As a CityLab Educator, Meaghan loves showing students and teachers that it’s fun to put on large safety goggles and a spiffy white coat while answering health questions with biotechnology tools.

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CityLab Educator

Megan Glenn holds a B.A. from the University of Pennsylvania in Environmental Studies and Geology. She has previously taught and coordinated marine ecology programs on board the tall ship, A.J. Meerwald. She is dedicated to providing students with hands-on education that will spark interest and excitement in the sciences. She hopes that this interest will inspire the students of today to create the innovative advancements in medicine that will help her in her old age.

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CityLab Educator

Julia graduated from Boston University with a BA in Environmental Science. Before joining CityLab, she taught marine science in a variety of settings. Julia has worked at the New England Aquarium in both the husbandry and education departments.  She also taught and sailed aboard the tall ship Spirit of South Carolina. She loves teaching and learning science with all ages of students.

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CityLab Educator

Mark is a cell biologist and educator with extensive experience in molecular biology, biochemistry, gene expression, and bioinformatics. With technical expertise leading to co-authorship on several peer-reviewed scientific publications, he has been reputedly known as the “transfection go-to-guy”, “master of the screaming riboprobe”, and has cloned a wide assortment of DNA mutants.

As an educator, Mark recently earned the M.Ed. degree and certification in Middle School Science, and has developed curricula while teaching eighth grade biology, chemistry, and astronomy.  Prior to joining CityLab, Mark worked as a Teacher/Naturalist at the Mass Audubon Society engaging younger children in the exploration of nature as science. His passion is teaching hands-on science and math to kids, sparking curiosity, destroying misconceptions, and especially allowing girls (and boys) to realize that it’s ok to like science.

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Director of Research

Carla joined the CityLab team in 2000 to combine her passions for science, education, and business. She first entered a research laboratory through a National Science Foundation Student Science Training Program while a high school student in New York. One day after her high school graduation, she began work in a cancer research laboratory in NY, an experience that ultimately influenced her career path. She spent summer and winter vacations during her college years investigating the roles of viruses and biochemical modulators in cervical cancer. After graduating from Tufts University with degrees in electrical engineering and Spanish, she began a long graduate school path that included studies at Dartmouth College (Masters in Biomedical Engineering) and University of Rochester (Masters of Business Administration). While in Rochester, Carla worked as an engineer for a surgical laser start-up company that designed devices to facilitate minimally invasive surgical procedures. She then decided to return to school to study cancer biology and earned her D.Sc. from Harvard University in 2000.

Carla has a long-standing interest in education. During the past 13 years, she has helped thousands of students to prepare for standardized entrance exams at all levels and has volunteered for several programs that encourage women to study science and engineering. She is now running Symmetry Learning, a company that develops and markets an innovative inquiry-based science education program for grades K-8.

Carla enjoys fine dining and traveling.

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MobileLab Driver

Bill served in the Marine corp. for three years as an accounting technician. He has been a professional driver since 1982 and is a certified driving instructor. Bill keeps the MobileLab running and in tip-top shape! In addition, Bill is a member of the Marine corp. league and enjoys various outdoor activities.

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