Extracting deoxyribonucleic acid — it’s easier done than said.
This is what students in Christine Bergeron’s magnet class at Defer Elementary discovered on Wednesday during a visit by Dr. Francesca Luca, a geneticist at Wayne State University. Not only did they learn what DNA is, what it stands for, and how important it is, they even had an opportunity to conduct an experiment in which they were able to extract it.
The visit was a part of the third and fourth graders’ study of traits and inheritance in science class. Following a presentation on what DNA is and how it is formed, the students were given materials to extract DNA from strawberries.
What is DNA?
It’s a history book – a narrative of our species’ journey through time.
It’s a shop manual, with an incredibly detailed blueprint for building every human cell.
And it’s a transformative textbook of medicine, with insights that will give health care providers immense new powers to treat, prevent and cure disease.
– Francis Collins, leader of the Human Genome Project
First, they put the fruit in a Ziplock bag, then mashed the strawberries with their hands to break open the cells and release the DNA.
Next they mixed together two teaspoons of detergent, a teaspoon of salt, and 1/2 cup of water in a cup to make the DNA extraction liquid. They added two teaspoons of the DNA extraction liquid into the bag with the fruit, then gently mashed it again for another minute before pouring the contents of the bag into a filter created with a coffee filter placed inside a plastic cup.
After gently squeezing the filter to let the liquid seep through, the young scientists poured an equal amount of cold rubbing alcohol into the fruit liquid. Within a few seconds, a white cloudy substance appeared — the DNA! — in the top layer above the fruit extract layer.
Of the “fun facts” Dr. Luca shared with the third and fourth graders, including that every cell in our bodies has the same DNA, one that resonated with many of the students was how humans are more alike than they are different.
“I learned that everybody here is 99.9 percent alike and 0.1 percent unique,” Noah Cruz said.
Kenydee Dupree put it in a different way: “I learned that we all are different, but we have very similar DNA.”
The students also learned that not only humans are composed of DNA.
“I learned that you can extract DNA from all living things and you can extract it from all fruit, too,” Harrison Wood said.
“I learned that you can extract DNA from pizza,” Michael Denner said, “but only certain parts of it.”
Owen Gifford and Declan Johnson agreed that learning about DNA made them more interested in becoming a scientist someday.
This is part of Dr. Luca’s goal in conducting outreach to elementary students. Often, she has students from the Luca Lab come with her to help and talk with the children. Activities are generally designed for 30-minute recess periods during the winter months.
During the pandemic, Dr. Luca designed experiments students could conduct at home, but she is glad to get back into the classroom to work with students in-person.
“With children, it’s raising the next generation of scientists,” she said. “First of all, I think it’s really rewarding as a scientist to see the children engaged at such a young age. You’re seeding the next generation and getting them excited. There’s a lot to gain and learn, not only for the students, but for us, too. Every time we do an activity, we learn a different way of doing it. We learn what really engages the children. We learn to communicate science to a diverse audience.
“There are also concepts that are important not just for scientists, but for daily life,” she added. “Like we are all the same. Or we need to work as a group.”
Click here for more information about the Luca Lab’s outreach and some science projects students can do at home.
North Peer 2 Peer hosts Family Center visit
This week’s Wellness Wednesday was brought to Grosse Pointe North students by Peer 2 Peer, a student team centered around promoting help-seeking and reducing the stigma surrounding mental health.
The students invited The Family Center of Grosse Pointe & Harper Woods to conduct a Mental Health Q&A for students and faculty during the two lunch periods on Wednesday, March 23.
Present from The Family Center were Executive Director Jennifer Bingaman and Director of Programs and Administration MaryJo Harris, along with local therapist Sarah Emmerson, a member of The Family Center’s Association of Professionals.
Students asked a range of questions, from what it’s like to be in therapy and what to expect when first meeting with a therapist, to different clinical approaches and how to support a friend in need.
“There is only so much you can carry in emotional support for a friend or loved one,” Emmerson said, in particular when it comes to issues of safety, suicide ideation, drugs or alcohol, anxiety and depression, or past trauma.
Emmerson stressed the importance of talking to a professional who doesn’t have the same emotional attachment as a friend or parent.
She also said one doesn’t have to be diagnosed with a mental illness to seek help from a therapist. Moreover, asking for help doesn’t mean there is “anything wrong with you. You just need another way to cope.”
She compared a fear or anxiety to a rope coiled on the floor. If you don’t examine the rope, it may look like a snake.
“The more we hold things in our head, the scarier they seem,” she said.
One of the benefits of therapy, she added, is it provides “skills and tools you will use your whole life.”
The Family Center provided a few tools for students to take with them to help manage stress and anxiety. These included a flyer helping to separate stress from anxiety and offering ways to cope and find help; yoga posses for stress relief; fidget toys; and journals with inspirational quotes on the cover and journaling prompts on the inside, such as “Identify things you’re grateful for,” “Identify a goal you have,” “Describe the best compliment you’ve ever gotten,” and “Write a positive message for yourself on bad days.”
The journal was North counselor Jenny Sherman’s favorite takeaway tool from the session.
“Recording your experiences and feelings in a journal can help you sort out your thoughts, manage our emotions, and maintain your mental health,” she wrote to students after the event. “It provides an opportunity for positive self-talk and identifying negative thoughts and behaviors. To start journaling, pick a time to write every day and challenge yourself to write whatever comes to your mind for 10 to 15 minutes.”
School psychologist Christine Kuhl’s favorite part of the event was “having a safe, welcoming space for students to share their questions. It was a hopeful experience to hear how our students are looking out for their own wellness and that of their friends as well. Our presenters also did an excellent job providing really good responses. Overall, it was a very uplifting event.”
The Family Center of Grosse Pointe & Harper Woods is a non-profit community organization that provides resources and preventative education to empower families to successfully navigate life’s social, emotional, and physical challenges.
South DECA team excels at state conference
Grosse Pointe South’s DECA team participated in the Michigan DECA State Career Development Conference in March, with all of the participating students doing “a wonderful job representing Grosse Pointe South,” according to adviser Erin Moretz.
Among the 16 participants, Regan McDonald, Elizabeth Peberdy and Lucy Fry qualified for the International Career Development Conference, and Sophie Schuetze was accepted to the DECA Leadership Academy. In total, the team brought home 10 medals.
District wins resilience in business award
The Grosse Pointe Public School System was honored by the Grosse Pointe Chamber of Commerce with a Resilience in Business Award in recognition of perseverance in the face of a pandemic.
As one of the largest employers in the area, impacting almost 1,000 employees, 7,000 students and 5,500 families, GPPSS played a pivotal role in how the community as a whole reacted to the challenges, according to the district’s application. The school district’s response had to include both layered mitigation strategies and innovative solutions to continue student learning in a way that was safe for students and staff.
From working tirelessly to enhance remote instruction, to transitioning back to face-to-face with layers of mitigation ranging from assessing and enhancing all of the building’s HVAC systems and purchasing air filters, to providing everything from masks to gloves to desk screens to hand sanitizer that met fire code, the administration and staff worked diligently to meet student and family needs while navigating guidance from the national Centers for Disease Control, Michigan Department of Health and Human Services, Wayne County Health Department and the locally elected school board.
While Board President Joseph Herd and Superintendent Jon Dean received the award on behalf of the district, as far as Dr. Dean was concerned, “It was recognition for the resilience of our teachers, our staff, our parents and our kids during an unprecedented pandemic.”
South literary magazine receives gold medal
The Columbia Scholastic Press Association awarded Grosse Pointe South’s literary magazine, The Looking Glass, a Gold Medal for its 2020-21 literary magazine. The theme for last year’s magazine was “Me, Myself & I” and the editor-in-chief was Eva McCord.
Congratulations to The Looking Glass staff and advisers Harry Campion and Taryn Loughlin on this achievement.
Copies of the 2020-21 and 2021-22 editions are available for sale for $15 each. Click here for an order form.
Alumni Through the Decades
Our 100th anniversary series on GPPSS alumni continues
Chad Hepner
Grosse Pointe South High School
Class of 1993
Chad Hepner was named state champion in diving in 1993, the year he graduated from Grosse Pointe South High School.
Nearly three decades later, his son Logan, a junior at Grosse Pointe South, earned the same title in 2022.
A love of sports runs in the Hepner family, with Chad following his own father’s career path as a player and coach. Russ Hepner, a physical education teacher at South, served as head football coach from 1968 to 1986. While he retired from coaching before Chad joined the football program, he was assistant coach under head football coach John Rice, a close family friend and godfather to Chad.
Chad enjoyed a successful football career with the Blue Devils as the first South football running back to rush for over 1,000 yards, among other accomplishments. But it was diving that the state champion and two-time All-American pursued at Michigan State University, where he majored in kinesiology in the School of Education, with a minor in history.
After graduating from MSU and completing his student teaching, Chad spent a year at Kenyon College as the strength coach for the athletic program and the diving coach. In 2000, he was hired as a P.E. teacher at Grosse Pointe South — replacing his father, who was retiring.
“I was happy to come back to Grosse Pointe,” Chad said. “I knew it was a great school system and a great community. I didn’t necessarily plan on coming back here to make it my home, but it worked out and I knew what a great opportunity it was.”
While at MSU, Chad met his wife, Kimberly, a fellow diver. The couple got married in 2002 and currently live in Grosse Pointe Park with their three children, Logan, 17, Wyatt, 15, and Brooke, 13.
Their children are carrying on their parents’ affinity for sports. In addition to Logan’s success as a diver, Wyatt, a freshman, was the only wrestler at the school to qualify for the state championship and finished seventh in the state, earning all-state accolades. Brooke, a seventh grader at Pierce, plays for a high-level travel soccer team and for her school volleyball and basketball teams.
Logan also distinguished himself outside the athletic arena, as one of two South students — and representing 1 percent of 260,000 submissions nationwide — to win a National Scholastic Art Gold Medal in metals.
“That’s an area I don’t know anything about,” Chad confessed about his oldest son’s achievement. “He loves metal working. He started that when he was a freshman. He loves (art teacher) Mr. Szmrecsanyi.”
While Chad began his teaching career at South in the physical education department, the program was cut back his third year and for about 10 years he taught history. For the past six or so years, he has enjoyed a split schedule where he teaches history in the morning and physical education the rest of the day.
On the coaching side, he spent a decade as the boys’ diving coach and started coaching football in 2001. He began as a varsity assistant, then was head JV coach for a few years, stepping in as the interim head coach following the death of the head coach. He continued coaching when Tim Brandon took over as head coach and has served as the varsity defensive coach since 2011. In 2014, he was named the Michigan High School Football Coaches Association Assistant Coach of the Year.
Named head football after Tim Brandon retired, Chad is optimistic about the coming season, especially with the quarterback, running back and some strong offensive linemen returning. At the same time, the team lost some strong players, including nine starters on defense and Will Johnson, who was widely ranked as the No. 1 cornerback in the country.
“We have some work to do, but I’m optimistic because we have some great guys coming back,” Chad said.
In his new role, he hopes to inspire young men the way his head coach, John Rice, inspired him while he was a player.
For young people who are pursuing teaching and coaching as a career, Chad says, “It’s a lot of work, but it’s very rewarding. For me, I know the impact that sports and the coaches had on me growing up. Hopefully this is a chance to have that kind of an impact on kids today.”
More alumni profiles are available on the Grosse Pointe Alumni & Friends website.
Summer Theatre Camp lottery goes live April 4
Summer Theatre Camp directors Heather Albrecht and Michelle Stackpoole and producer Sarah Duffield are excited to bring The Wizard of Oz to the stage this summer for GPPSS students entering grades 3 to 9 in the fall.
Students will participate in creating a musical production that promotes positive risk taking, self-discipline and teamwork. Participants will learn several aspects of musical theater including dance, drama, music, script exploration and character development.
A lottery for the cast of 60 will be open April 4 to 14. Students who are not selected will be placed on a waiting list and any applications submitted after the lottery will remain in the database until the original waiting list has been exhausted.
Families will be notified on April 19 via the email address provided on the application whether their child has been selected or placed on a waiting list. Siblings will be grouped together in the lottery. The $410 camp tuition is fully refundable up until June 13.
Click here for more information and to access the lottery link beginning the morning of April 4.
Also, mark your calendars now for the performances on Friday, July 1, at 10 a.m. and 7 p.m. at Grosse Pointe North’s Performing Arts Center. Tickets will be sold online.
South presents Stephen Sondheim’s ‘Into the Woods’
Grosse Pointe South’s spring musical is “Into the Woods,” by Stephen Sondheim. The story follows a Baker and his wife who wish to have a child; Cinderella, who wishes to attend the King’s Festival; and Jack, who wishes his cow would give milk. When the Baker and his wife learn that they cannot have a child because of a Witch’s curse, the two set off on a journey to break the curse. Everyone’s wish is granted, but the consequences of their actions return to haunt them later with disastrous results.
Performances are at 7 p.m., April 20 to 23, at Grosse Pointe North’s Performing Arts Center. Tickets can be purchased at gpsouthchoir.org/events.
Enjoy your spring break! School Pointes will return on Friday, April 8.
School Pointes is a publication of the Grosse Pointe Public School System. To submit story ideas or Pointes of Pride, email info@gpschools.org.