Scott Michael

Scott Michael serves as a Professor in the Department of Biological Sciences at Florida Gulf Coast University and is an active faculty member in the Science Education Alliance-Phage Hunters Advancing Genomics and Evolutionary Science (SEA-PHAGES) program. He has taught multiple undergraduate research courses since 2016, primarily instructing freshmen and sophomores in phage discovery and genomics.

His research focuses on microbial systems using Gordonia terrae and Corynebacterium glutamicum as bacterial hosts, with expertise spanning:

• Experimental phage isolation (in situ)
• Genomic annotation and bioinformatics (in silico)
• Evolutionary analysis of bacteriophages
• Undergraduate research pedagogy
• Microbial host-pathogen interactions

Professor Michael teaches 2-3 weekly sessions for 3-4.5 hours per course, typically enrolling 10-20 students per section. His instructional approach integrates wet-lab techniques with computational genomics through the Honors Virus Hunters curriculum (courses ISC 2930/IDH 3910), emphasizing hands-on research experience in phage biology.