LabXchange by Amgen Foundation and Harvard’s Faculty of Arts and Sciences Reimagines the Science Experience for Students around the Globe

By iednewsdesk Last updated May 1, 2020

The Amgen Foundation and the Faculty of Arts and Sciences at Harvard University (Harvard FAS) today announced the global launch of LabXchange™, a free online science education platform that provides users with access to personalized instruction, virtual lab experiences and networking opportunities across the global scientific community. LabXchange is purpose-built to drive more inclusion in the scientific process and spark collaboration to build creative, team-based approaches to real-world problems.

“Too many high school and college students lack the opportunity to directly explore the scientific process – where you build a hypothesis, understand a method, and determine how to apply it to an appropriate experimental problem,” said Robert Lue, Ph.D., principal investigator of LabXchange and professor of the Practice of Molecular and Cellular Biology at Harvard. “For many students, science can feel like a collection of facts to memorize – which is contrary to what the scientific process is – it’s a journey that requires bold thinking and deep imagination. With LabXchange, more students can come together and experience the joy of discovery.”

“Everyone needs science, and science needs everyone,” said Robert A. Bradway, chairman and chief executive officer at Amgen. “At a time of remarkable scientific progress, we’re excited by the potential of LabXchange to educate and inspire both students and lifelong learners of all ages.”

LabXchange is designed to level the playing field for students and to promote science literacy for all. Key features of LabXchange include:

Free access to a library of world-class educational content including videos, interactive simulation and assessments.
Ability to mix and match materials, empowering teachers to create flexible learning pathways for classes or individual students that complement existing science curriculums.
Global networking functionality, enabling teachers to collaborate beyond a single classroom, school or district.

LabXchange builds upon other Amgen Foundation programs that support science education, such as the Amgen Biotech Experience and Amgen Scholars that are also at Harvard FAS and institutions around the world. To date, the Foundation has contributed more than $150 million to advancing science education programming globally as part of its mission to facilitate global collaboration on the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), notably SDG #4 on Quality Education but also SDG #3 on Good Health and Well-Being.