The College of the Canyons (COC) Biological and Environmental Sciences Department was awarded the State Chancellor’s Office Innovative Use of Technology Award at the Chief Information Systems Officers Association (CISOA) Technology Summit. 

The award recognizes cutting edge advancements in the department’s microbiology laboratories, spearheaded by Dr. Shane Ramey, a microbiology instructor at the college. 

The department has created an innovative laboratory environment that is capable of achieving the highest safety standards for teaching labs set by the American Society of Microbiology (ASM), commonly referred to as “paperless” labs. 

The term “paperless” refers to the ability of students to access all necessary resources in the lab without ever handling anything that will leave the lab with them, such as a paper lab manual, notebook, and pens or pencils. This is particularly important in a microbiology laboratory where students work with live microbes, and such items could potentially become contaminated.

Paperless labs provide students with enhanced safety and have shown a demonstrable increase in student engagement and collaboration, according to Ramey. 

“I am honored to receive this award on behalf of the biological and environmental sciences department and College of the Canyons,” said Ramey. “Paperless microbiology laboratories are extremely rare at the academic level, even among four-year colleges and universities, primarily because of the technological burden of operating such labs.

Ramey was able to establish paperless microbiology laboratories at COC by incorporating technology into the labs that students interact with. 

Every microbiology student at COC has their own lab-dedicated iPad and Apple pencil that allow them to access the digital open education resource (OER) lab manual and other web-based resources, take notes, and share data with their lab partners, as well as their own specialized microscope with an advanced camera system that allows them to view and take pictures of their specimens using their iPad. Students can then access all of their lab notes, data, and pictures from anywhere via their cloud-based OneDrive accounts.

COC’s first paperless microbiology laboratory was established in the fall of 2021 with the opening of the Don Takeda Science Center at the Canyon Country campus.

“Dr. Ramey and the biology department have done an amazing job creating an interactive learning space for our students where they can experience a state-of-the-art laboratory environment,” said James Temple, vice president of information technology at the college.

For more information about the college’s biology department, click here.

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