Mara Laslo
Assistant Teaching Professor in Biological Sciences
I am excited to teach both majors and non-majors in introductory biology and a variety of other courses and am committed to empowering students to pursue science.
As an educator, I strive to center the student as a scientist in a welcoming and empowering environment. I structure classes to go beyond content by explicitly focusing on preparing students for their future careers. My students engage in metacognitive reflection, directly apply course concepts to their lives, and collaborate within an experiential and inclusive environment.
My research has spanned many different systems but has always been focused on the diversity of life. After receiving my undergraduate degree from University of Maryland, Baltimore County with a major in Biological Sciences with a minor in German, I pursued a Masters degree at American University with Dr. David Angelini and studied somatic sex determination genes in milkweed bugs. At American University I learned about the field of evolutionary developmental biology and I became fascinated by the idea that small changes in development can translate to evolutionary patterns of extraordinary diversity.
I continued in this field for my PhD in Organismic and Evolutionary Biology at Harvard University. My PhD thesis, completed in Dr. James Hanken’s lab, was on the evolution and hormonal basis of direct development in frogs (this is a fascinating species where they lack the tadpole stage and develop directly into adults!). Teaching herpetology during my PhD reminded me that I love getting people excited about science. I pursued further training education at the Derek Bok Center for Teaching and Learning and Harvard Medical School.
In my spare time, I like to ride my horses Pistachio and BlackJack, try new recipes, read sci-fi and fantasy books, and take walks to nearby bakeries.
Education
- B.S., University of Maryland, Baltimore County
- M.S., American University
- Ph.D., Harvard University
Current and upcoming courses
Stem Cell Biology with Lab
BISC339
The isolation of embryonic stem cells in 1998 promised huge advances in regenerative medicine. Since then, stem cell biology has created a lot of “buzz” in the public imagination and has been the intense focus of federally and privately funded research. Research institutes have made strides toward understanding how stem cells can form every cell in the human body, and how these cells can be used in disease treatment. Unregulated stem cell clinics have also emerged, promising miracle cures. In this course, students will analyze historical and current scientific literature that explores adult, embryonic, and induced pluripotent stem cells; critique the literature behind promising investigative treatments for disease and analyze the claims made by stem cell clinics; and examine political and bioethical issues relating to stem cells. In the lab, students will use an invertebrate model organism to independently examine the role of specific genes in full-body regeneration and stem cell self-renewal.
This course has a required co-requisite laboratory - BISC 339L.