Michelle Jenson

Michelle Jenson serves as an Adjunct Professor in the Department of Biology at the University of West Florida, actively contributing to the HHMI Science Education Alliance-Phage Hunters Advancing Genomics and Evolutionary Science (SEA-PHAGES) program.

Her research expertise spans critical areas of modern biology:

• Phage Genomics
• Bioinformatics
• Evolutionary Science
• Microbiology

In Spring 2016, Dr. Jenson co-instructed the BSC2011L course (In silico phage genomics/bioinformatics) for 17 undergraduate students (15 freshmen, 2 seniors), conducting 2 weekly sessions totaling 6 hours. The course utilized Mycobacterium smegmatis as the bacterial host for computational phage genome analysis, emphasizing hands-on genomic annotation and evolutionary modeling techniques.

Dr. Jenson's educational approach integrates authentic research experiences into undergraduate curricula through the SEA-PHAGES framework, developing student competencies in genomic data analysis while advancing collaborative scientific discovery in bacteriophage evolution.