Team:CSL Pittsburgh/Team

Our Team

Donald Poindexter, Jr:

My name is Donald Poindexter, Jr and I am currently a Senior at Central Catholic High School. I serve two main roles on our iGEM team: Researcher and Wiki Editor. As a researcher, I thoroughly investigated what pesticides are impacting Apis mellifera and how best to combat them. I also assisted in data collection and will be responsible for the statistical interpretation of our results. As Wiki Editor, I edited and designed the CSL_Pittsburgh Wiki page, with the help of my teammates as well. I am excited about being a part of iGEM because it is an exchange of ideas amongst peers with the added benefit of our research possibly creating a tangible change in the world. I intend to study Mathematics and Computer Science in college. Outside of iGEM, I enjoy puzzles, coding, long walks on the beach, and watching movies.

Jensynia Baynes:

My name is Jensynia Baynes, and I am a senior visual arts student at Pittsburgh Creative and Performing Arts School. I am excited about being a part of the iGEM team this year because it allows me to get first hand experience in Biology and expand my knowledge with experimentation done in the lab. My primary role on the iGEM team is to serve as a graphic designer; and I also take part in beehive research and fabrication. As a graphic designer, I helped design and create the Bee-banner for our iGEM team. My creative input was also used to design the team logo. One of the most important aspects I learned during our project so far is that honeybees cannot function without a Queen Bee. They solely depend on her to help the hive. In addition, they also depend on each other. When I am not at iGEM, I like to volunteer, read, create and design patterns for textiles. My future goals are to attend college and major in Biology/Pre-Med.

Alexis Crichlow:

My name is Alexis Crichlow and I am a junior at The Ellis School. I am excited about iGEM because it is my first experience conducting scientific research. On our team, I am a Beehive Engineer and a Researcher. As a Beehive Engineer, I helped research, design, and construct the Beehive. As a researcher I helped gather information for our project and perform the lab techniques needed to complete our project such as transformations and plasmid preps. My future goals are to attend college and major in marine biology. I would like to one day work with marine animals in a veterinary capacity. When I’m not at iGEM, I like to participate in sports such as soccer and basketball, and watch Netflix.

Heavlyn Jennings:

My name is Heavlyn Jennings. I worked as a graphic designer, Beehive engineer and also the scientific aspects of our iGEM project this year. I attend the Westinghouse Arts Academy. I am a sophomore studying studio arts, which is partly why most of my roles were in the creative and engineering realm, such as designing the logo alongside my peers. Working on the iGEM project has been exciting because my future goal is to become an architect so I have gotten some experience. I also enjoyed the biology part of our project because I am always learning something new.