SEATTLE -- At Seattle BioMed, high school students get a close-up look at the worldwide battle against infectious diseases.
It's part of the Washington Global Health Alliance Ambassadors program funded by the Gates Foundation.
The basic idea is to get kids into a professional setting and show them that studying math and science now can be cool, can lead to actual jobs and important work in the real world.
Breaking the stereotypes of scientists as nerds and scientists as just aging white men in lab coats is a big part of this program.
"It would be cool to help people out," said Cleveland High School junior Marcus Lee. "I'd need the right training and bet I could get that here."
"I'm passionate about it and I just want to go for it," said Van Ha Nguyen, also a junior at Cleveland. "Especially if it can help other people then I can do it."
The program has been running for three years. The lab work and tours are just part of a broader science-based curriculum. Students from Blaine High School, Toppenish, the Health Sciences and Human Services High School in Burien, as well as Cleveland, are involved.
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