Etcetera

WASC Extends Kellogg School's Accreditation 10 Years
The Scripps Research Institute's Kellogg School of Science and Technology has been reaccredited by the Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC) for 10 years—the maximum period possible.

"This is great news and a vote of confidence in our program," said Jamie Williamson, dean of graduate and postgraduate studies. "Thank you to everyone who participated in the process. We have invested a lot of time in self-improvement, we have benefitted in many ways, and we should continue to strive to improve our program to make it the best that it can be."

The three-year WASC review process included site visits from the WASC committee and input from faculty, administration, students, postdoctoral fellows, and staff to clarify the program's direction and identify areas for improvement.

According to the March 7, 2011 letter from WASC Accrediting Commission for Senior Colleges and Universities, "Early indications are that the new teaching and learning practices are becoming part of Scripps Research's growing 'culture of assessment' and may become a model for similar research institutions across the nation."

The Scripps Research graduate program was launched in 1989. Since then, it has grown in both size and reputation, now consisting of more than 200 students on the institute's La Jolla, California and Jupiter, Florida campuses. The program is consistently ranked among the top ten graduate programs in the country for biology and chemistry in publications such as U.S. News & World Report.

Scripps Research Papers Ranked Among Top in Biochemistry, Immunology, and Structural Biology
Studies led by two Scripps Research scientists were ranked among the top papers in biochemistry, immunology, and structural biology in the March issue of The Scientist, an online publication of the Faculty of 1000 (F1000).

According to the F1000 evaluation, a study from the Kodadek lab ranks second among biochemistry papers and fourth among immunology papers. The study, "Identification of Candidate IgG Biomarkers for Alzheimer's Disease via Combinatorial Library Screening," by Reddy et al. (Cell, 144:1, 132-142, January 7, 2011) presents a novel method to identify antibody biomarkers for diseases without known antigens. The technique may prove useful for identifying diagnostic markers in a wide variety of diseases, noted F1000 evaluators.

The F1000 also ranked a study from the Williamson lab, "Visualizing ribosome biogenesis: parallel assembly pathways for the 30S subunit," by Mulder et al. (Science, 330:6004, 673-677, October 29, 2010), second in the field of structural biology and fourth among biochemistry papers. The study details a novel technique to observe and identify in vivo the intermediate steps in ribosome creation. A major technical feat, the work could open new pathways for development of antibiotics and treatments for diseases tied to errors in ribosome formation. In addition, the techniques, noted the F1000 evaluation, offer a powerful method for studying the assembly of other biological complexes.

The Faculty of 1000 is an international post-publication peer review group that identifies and evaluates the most important articles in biology and medical research publications. The F1000 Top 7 is a snapshot of the highest ranked articles from a 30-day period. Faculty Members evaluate and rate the most important papers in their field.