Laurentian’s Dr. Thomas Merritt Awarded VROC Honour

March 21, 2013 – Laurentian University Associate Professor and Canada Research Chair in Genomics and Bioinformatics Dr. Thomas Merritt is being honoured as the first-ever recipient of the Virtual Researcher On Call (VROC) Expert Participation Award.

The VROC program was launched in 2006 by Partners in Research, a London, Ontario-based registered charity promoting science education, with a focus on Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics as fields of discovery and study for Canadian students. 

VROC brings Canadian university researchers and other experts into elementary and secondary school classrooms through video-conferencing, giving students direct access to some of the world’s leading scientists. Many of these discussions are available as podcasts through the VROC video library, and through YouTube and iTunes.  There are now close to 90 titles in the VROC “This Week in Science and Education” video library (www.vroc.ca ).

“Dr. Merritt has been so generous with his time, and so energetic in his efforts to promote this program,” said VROC Executive Director Kevin Cougler, in announcing the award.  “His contributions are truly making a difference in the lives of our students, and in fact, we created this award with Thomas in mind.”

Dr. Merritt has acted as researcher/interviewer in more than eighty VROC podcasts to date, alongside guest experts who describe and explain their research objectives in various fields of science. The VROC program is currently being used by school boards in Ontario and Alberta with plans to roll out in Nunavut in September 2013, giving students the opportunity to put their own questions to a university researcher.

Late last year, VROC was brought into an advanced biology class at the International School of Dakar in Senegal, with Dr. Merritt making five appearances over the course of a semester.

“Thomas encourages them and pushes them and laughs with them, even though the call is at 6:00 a.m. his time,” said teacher Ingrid Ermanovics.  “The notion of a stuffy, boring, nerdy scientist is out the window.”

“I am honoured by this award,” said Dr. Merritt.  “VROC is a great program connecting dedicated researchers with energetic teachers and students; a program I’m excited to be a part of.  It’s a way of using technology to lift science out of the textbook and make it very real and accessible to young people.  That’s a fantastic objective, and I’m glad to be part of it,” he said.

The Inaugural VROC Expert Participation Award will be presented to Dr. Merritt at the Partners in Research National Awards ceremony June 2 in London, Ontario. 

Several other Laurentian faculty have participated in VROC programs, including Dr Tammy Eger, Dr. Scott Fairgrieve, Dr. David Lesbarrères, Dr. Jacqueline Litzgus, and Dr. David Pearson.

A promotional video for the VROC program can be viewed here:

http://www.youtube.com/user/ResearcherOnCall

The list of VROC National Award recipients can be viewed here:

http://www.vroc.ca/pir/en/pir_national_awards_recipients/

Media Contacts

For further information or to schedule an interview, please contact:

Joanne Musico                                                                           

Manager, Communications                                                          

Tel: 705-675-1151 ext. 3445 or 1-800-263-4188 ext.3445    

jmusico@laurentian.ca                                                                

Sherry Drysdale

Communications

Tel: 705-698-4702

sdrysdale@laurentian.ca