The UNT Health Science Center will host the inaugural preparatory class of Texas Academy of Biomedical Sciences eighth-graders at Research Appreciation Day (RAD) on April 1.

Approximately 75 students from the TABS Prep Academy in Fort Worth ISD will wear the white coats given to them by the Health Science Center as they explore poster presentations, eat lunch on campus, listen to the keynote speaker and report what they learned after the event.

TABS Prep is a new middle school outreach program to prepare incoming eighth-graders for TABS, the early-college, high-school program scheduled to open in August 2011. TABS Prep focuses on developing higher-order math and science knowledge and helping students build skills needed for college and careers in biotechnology, biomedical science research and medical fields. 

The Health Science Center creates opportunities like RAD throughout the year to bring students to campus to learn more about careers in the biomedical field. The Health Science Center also hosted TABS Prep students at a summer camp in 2010, leading the Science Sleuth Laboratory, Anatomy/Simulation Laboratory, Introduction to Biomedical Sciences and Medical Paleontology at the Fort Worth Museum of Science and History.

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