Year in Review 2020

2020

For a year that saw unforeseen and unprecedented challenges, there certainty were a lot of highlights.

Join us for a look back on very memorable year.

LOOKING FOR THE CLASS OF 2021

January 2020

Gloucester Biotechnology Academy begins the search for the Class of 2021, with the first Open House for interested and prospective students at the Academy’s teaching lab.

GMGI HEADS TO HAWAII

February 2020

Perks of the job: Research Scientist Tim Sullivan goes on location in Hawaii to give a talk on CRISPR-based diagnostics at the Aquaculture America 2020 conference.

THE CONVERGENCE OF ART AND SCIENCE

February 2020

GMGI partners with fellow Cape Ann nonprofit MANSHIP Artists Residency + Studios to bridge the gap between art and science. Community members and artists gather at the research institute to hear from artists Kimberly Collins Jermain and Daniel Jay as they share their experience using their scientific backgrounds to guide their art.

KICKING OFF 2020 WITH A MAJOR GRANT ANNOUNCEMENT

February 2020

GMGI hosts Governor Charlie Baker, along with Lt. Governor Karyn Polito and members of their Cabinet, as he announces over $14M in Workforce Skills Capital Grants – $940K of which was awarded to GMGI to build out and equip a new biomanufacturing learning environment in the Gloucester Biotechnology Academy.

GMGI LENDS EXPERTISE TO CANCER ADVANCE CONFERENCE PANEL

March 2020

GMGI’s Donald G. Comb Science Director Andrea Bodnar joins co-founder Marc Vidal and friend of GMGI, Dr. Graham Walker, at the Cancer Advance Conference at MIT to discuss marine genomics and cancer.

WORK FROM HOME ERA BEGINS

March 2020

Dust off the home office and set up that Zoom account! GMGI staff shift to remote work as the COVID-19 pandemic hits the US.

ACADEMY OFFERS VIRTUAL INFO SESSION

April 2020

Despite the ongoing pandemic, Academy staff hold their first virtual Open House on Zoom to provide info for students interested in joining the upcoming Class of 2021.

GMGI CO-FOUNDER HEADLINES FIRST SCIENCE HOUR LECTURE

April 2020

With in-person events cancelled, the GMGI Science Hour is born. Co-founder David Walt delivers the first installment of the virtual lecture series, describing his experience co-leading the Massachusetts Consortium for Pathogen Readiness and his efforts to help the fight against COVID-19.

ACADEMY STUDENT JOINS FRONT LINES OF COVID-19 FIGHT

April 2020

Academy student - and Gloucester native - Emily Ryan is given an incredible opportunity while interning at Sherlock Biosciences: she was named to their COVID-19 team, dedicated to developing diagnostic tests to quickly and accurately identify the presence of COVID-19. Way to go, Emily!

ACADEMY ALL-STARS REUINTE

May 2020

A few Academy alumni reunite on Zoom to take a walk down memory lane, recounting their experience in the Academy and how far they’ve come since graduation from the program.

GMGI RESEARCH PUBLISHED IN SCIENTIFIC REPORTS

June 2020

After over ten years of research, Donald G. Comb Science Director Andrea Bodnar’s groundbreaking research on the long-lived red sea urchin is published in the journal Scientific Reports with GMGI’s Research Associate Jennifer Polinski as lead author.

NOBEL LAUREATE JOINS THE GMGI SCIENCE HOUR

July 2020

The first season of the GMGI Science Hour wraps up with Nobel Prize winner Dr. Martin Chalfie speaking on his award-winning research on green fluorescent proteins, and how it revolutionized the understanding of cancer, Alzheimer’s and other diseases.

GMGI HIRE TO FOCUS ON COMMERCILIZATION

August 2020

GMGI hires its first Entrepreneur-in-Residence, Eric Huang, to assist in the organization’s commercialization efforts, translating our innovate research into viable new opportunities.

INTRODUCING THE CLASS OF 2021!

August 2020

Donning required PPE with palpable enthusiasm, the Class of 2021 begins their nine-month journey to a new career in biotech.

GMGI, OCEAN ALLIANCE AND THE SNOTBOT HEAD OUT ON THE WATER

August 2020

GMGI Scientist Matt Harke joined neighbor Ocean Alliance on a trip to the Stellwagen NMS to collect whale blow samples with their famous SNOTBOT.

CLASS OF 2020 CELEBRATES GRADUATION

September 2020

Congratulations! Members of the Class of 2020 graduate in small, intimate outdoor ceremony at Maritime Gloucester.

LIGHTS, CAMERA, ACTION – THE GMGI SCIENCE HOUR RETURNS

October 2020

Season two of the virtual GMGI Science Hour kicks off featuring renowned infectious disease expert Dr. Bruce Walker of the Ragon Institute sharing his experience treating patients with HIV and how it relates to his participation in the current fight against COVID-19.

GMGI TEAM CONTINUES TO GROW

October 2020

Welcome to GMGI! Both the Research and Administration teams grow by one with the addition of Research Associate Dylan Comb and Accounting + Operations Associate Elizabeth Landergren.

Second Nobel Prize Winner Speaks at the GMGI Science Hour

November 2020

2019 Nobel Laureate William G. Kaelin, Jr M.D. joins the GMGI Science Hour to talk about his path from being a ``C`` student to the accepting the Nobel Prize in Stockholm.

GMGI, OCEANX TO JOIN FORCES

December 2020

In a shared press release, GMGI announces an exciting new partnership with ocean exploration initiative OceanX to bring together the advanced genomic capabilities of GMGI with the sophisticated exploration, media and storytelling abilities of OceanX.