By building strong partnerships with our global and local communities, we create opportunities for interested community members and students, particularly those from backgrounds underrepresented in STEM, to engage with our science, learn about our research and operations, and explore STEM careers.
We regularly host events to support local non-profits, such as our Winter Donations Drive, benefiting Youth On Fire, and our Bake Sale, benefiting Black Lives Matter Boston. Though the Ragon officially supports these events, and often matches donations, these initiatives are driven by workforce members, who propose, organize, and promote to the broader Ragon community.
On February 24, 2021 we held our inaugural Cambridge Public Library seminar, “Vaccines and the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Primer for the Public,” led by Director Bruce Walker, along with Harvard postdoctoral fellow Zuri Sullivan and Josefine Wendel of the Cambridge Public Health Department. We are planning to expand this into a regular program, hosting multiple seminars a year for Cambridge residents and other interested guests.
In April 2021, the Ragon hosted three projects for the virtual Cambridge Science Festival, an annual event. Ragon workforce members created the videos Why Do We Get Sick? and A T Cell’s Story, as well as hosting a virtual event for middle schoolers, where students made their own stethoscopes and learned about the circulatory system.
Our collaborative ethos applies to every aspect of our Institute, and we are committed to being an engaged and involved member of the communities we are fortunate to be a part of.
The Ragon hosts regular events for the academic community or for the public. For the duration of the COVID-19 pandemic, all of our events are virtual, but we will be returning to in-person gatherings when it is safe to do so.
