GENERAL INFORMATION ABOUT THE SUMMER INSTITUTE IN STATISTICAL GENETICS
SISG is open to anyone from all over the world who wishes to learn about any aspect of statistical and quantitative genetics from leading researchers. This includes students, post-docs, industry and government employees, teachers, policy makers, and others.
You may choose just one, or up to five, modules; most participants choose two or three. If you stay over the weekend, various options for entertainment in and around Atlanta are available. While we have arranged the modules into 4 parallel streams, you may pick and choose any combination when you apply, and in most cases will be assigned to your first preferences (depending on availability: classes are capped at 100).
To apply, first decide on your first and second preferences for each session. Modules last 2.5 days, starting on Monday morning and ending Wednesday lunchtime, or from Wednesday afternoon through Friday.
After we receive your application through the Application-link, we will provide you with a permit code which will allow you to sign up for your Modules, elect accommodation options, and make payments through the Registration link. Two weeks prior to the course you will be able to download materials and access the Module site.
Each module consists of ten 90-minute sessions with lectures or guided exercises arranged as shown here:
IN PERSON AND VIRTUAL EXPERIENCE OF THE SUMMER INSTITUTE OF STATISTICAL GENETICS
Most participants attend SISG in person. Classes will be held in the beautiful Kendeda Building for Sustainable Design, which has achieved Living Building Challenge certification – the world’s most ambitious building performance achievement. Rather than being less bad for the environment, The Kendeda Building fosters regenerative and restorative relationships amongst humans and nature where people give back more to the environment than they take. The building is net-positive energy and water over the course of each year. By incorporating salvaged materials during construction, the building diverted more waste from the landfill than it sent. To keep economic benefits local, at least 50% of the building materials and services were sourced from within 621 miles of the site. And it prioritizes occupant health and happiness. The Building is composed of materials screened for common hazardous chemicals known to harm human and environmental health. Learn more about this amazing building at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ja030aaVIEA and enjoy Gregg Willett’s photo.
During the pandemic, classes were virtual, but we returned to mostly-live classes for the final Seattle Institute in July of 2023. For those who cannot make it to Atlanta, you may request to attend sessions live via Zoom, and materials will be provided open access a month after the Institute. Please follow the same application process and additionally email us at sisg@biosci.gatech.edu to request to attend live via Zoom.
SCHEDULE OF FEES – 2024
| GROUP | EARLY BIRD (ends April 14) (fees per module) | REGULAR (ends May 24) (fees per module) |
| US Graduate Students | All Scholarships have been awarded as of Feb 29, 2024. Early Bird fee until April 14 is $500 per module | Fee for applications received from April 15 to May 24 will be $600 per module |
| Academic, Government, Non-Profit, Non-US Graduate Students | $695 | $795 |
| Corporate, For-Profit Organizations | $795 | $895 |
ABOUT ATLANTA
Some points of interest for new visitors:
- The Atlanta Beltline Trail
- Atlanta City Pass: Georgia Aquarium, World of Coca-Cola World, Zoo Atlanta
- Fernbank Museum
- College Football Hall of Fame
- Piedmont Park
- Historic Atlanta: National Center for Civil and Human Rights, Atlanta History Center, Carter Center and Presidential Library
- Nature: Chattahoochee River Walks, Hiking in the Appalachians, Kayaking, Rock Climbing, Cycling
- Nearby cities to explore: Athens, Savannah, Augusta, Chattanooga, Birmingham
ABOUT GREG GIBSON
The new Director of the Bruce Weir Summer Institutes in Statistical Genetics is Greg Gibson, who is Regents Professor and Tom and Marie Patton Chair in the School of Biological Sciences at the Georgia Institute of Technology. Greg has been an instructor at SISG for over 20 years, generally teaching the Introductory Genetics and Genomics, and Gene Expression modules. His own research addresses the use of transcriptomics for biomedicine and evolutionary genetics, as well as quantitative genetic studies of polygenic risk-by-environment interactions. Greg attended the University of Sydney as an undergraduate University of Basel for his PhD in Drosophila development, then did post-docs at Standford and Duke Universities. He has been a professor at the University of Michigan, North Carolina State, Queensland, and since 2009, Georgia Tech.
Please feel free to contact him using greg.gibson@biology.gatech.edu for any questions about SISG. Alternatively, SISG Manager Stefanie Boettle is always available to address your needs, at sisg@biosci.gatech.edu.
ABOUT BRUCE WEIR
Professor Bruce Weir founded the Summer Institutes in Statistical Genetics in 1995 while he was Director of the Bioinformatics Research Center at North Carolina State University in Raleigh. He Directed SISG and built it into the preeminent training program for the field over a period of 28 years, the last 20 after moving to the University of Washington in Seattle. He retired to his native home of New Zealand in the Fall of 2023. A prominent Biostatistician, he was named a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science in 1998, and elected a Fellow of the Royal Society in 2021. Bruce received the Elizabeth W. Jones Award for excellence in education from the Genetics Society of America in 2019, in part for his contributions in establishing the Summer Institutes.
Professor Bruce Weir founded the Summer Institutes in Statistical Genetics in 1995 while he was Director of the Bioinformatics Research Center at North Carolina State University in Raleigh. He Directed SISG and built it into the preeminent training program for the field over a period of 28 years, the last 20 after moving to the University of Washington in Seattle. He retired to his native home of New Zealand in the Fall of 2023. A prominent Biostatistician, he was named a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science in 1998, and elected a Fellow of the Royal Society in 2021. Bruce received the Elizabeth W. Jones Award for excellence in education from the Genetics Society of America in 2019, in part for his contributions in establishing the Summer Institutes.
CODE OF CONDUCT
All participants in the Summer Institute in Statistical Genetics (SISG) commit to ensuring that all attendees are assured of a safe, respectful, and inclusive environment free from discrimination, harassment, and other barriers that might prevent or inhibit participation and engagement for any person. This includes discrimination on the basis of race, color, national origin, disability, age and sex. Any complaints or indications of non-compliance will be reviewed by a panel of instructors, and participants are encouraged to notify us of concerns either by email to the program manager, or voice mail at the telephone number provided for expression of concern on the SISG website.
SISG also recognizes and celebrates freedom of expression as an essential element of the instructional mission, and seeks to provide the conditions within which hard thought, and therefore strong disagreement, independent judgment, and the questioning of stubborn assumptions, can flourish in an environment of the greatest freedom. Consequently, all participants have the latitude to speak, write, listen, challenge, and learn, except insofar as limitations on that freedom are necessary to the functioning of the class in a respectful manner. The freedom to debate and discuss the merits of competing ideas does not, of course, mean that individuals may say whatever they wish, wherever they wish. Expression that violates the law, that falsely defames or is targeted toward a specific individual, that constitutes a genuine threat or harassment, that unjustifiably invades substantial privacy or confidentiality interests, or that is otherwise directly incompatible with the functioning of any class will not be tolerated.
Any individual who feels they have experienced an incident of harassment will have the option of consultation with Georgia Tech counsellors, may be referred to legal and/or health services, and will be given the option to discuss the matter with the Director or one or more faculty of their choosing. In the interests of all attendees, and reflecting policy of Federal agencies that support the program, individuals who violate this policy may be restricted in their engagement up to and including removal from the Institute.