Genetics Foundation Receives Largest Individual Donation in Its History

ACMG Foundation receives $250,000 pledge

BETHESDA, Md., Oct. 6, 2011 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The American College of Medical Genetics Foundation (ACMG Foundation) announced that it has received the single largest donation from an individual in the organization's 20-year history.  The pledge of $250,000 was made anonymously and is unrestricted in its use.

"A donation of this magnitude can make a tremendous difference to an organization of our size," said R. Rodney Howell, M.D., FACMG, President of the ACMG Foundation.  "This individual said they trust the Foundation to do what we deem most important with the funds.  This freedom to put the funding where it is going to be the most powerful and useful is what the Foundation needs to implement the programs that will take us well into the 21st Century and to train the next generation of geneticists and to improve the public's health."

The ACMG Foundation is currently focusing many of its efforts on education including outreach and training of medical students and trainees, web-based and interactive tools for both geneticists and other types of physicians and healthcare providers as well as outreach to the general public.  In 2011, the ACMG Foundation implemented a variety of initiatives including the inaugural ACMG Foundation Summer Scholars Program.

The purpose of the ACMG Foundation Summer Genetics Scholars program is to identify and encourage highly qualified medical students to consider careers in medical genetics by providing hands-on experience of the exciting variety of opportunities – clinical and laboratory medicine, research, and services – available in medical genetics. Students choose leading participating medical genetics institutions, approved by ACMG, for a 6 to 8 week period during the Summer between their first and second years of medical school, to work under the direct supervision of experienced medical geneticists and received a weekly stipend.   For more information on the Summer Scholars Program and other ACMG Foundation initiatives, please visit www.acmgfoundation.org.

About the American College of Medical Genetics
Founded in 1991, the American College of Medical Genetics (www.acmg.net ) advances the practice of medical genetics by providing education, resources and a voice for more than 1400 biochemical, clinical, cytogenetic, medical and molecular geneticists, genetic counselors and other healthcare professionals committed to the practice of medical genetics and genomics. ACMG's activities include the development of laboratory and practice standards and guidelines, advocating for quality genetic services in healthcare and in public health, and promoting the development of methods to diagnose, treat and prevent genetic disease. Genetics in Medicine, published monthly, is the official ACMG peer-reviewed journal. ACMG's website (www.acmg.net) offers a variety of resources including Policy Statements, Practice Guidelines, Educational Resources, and a Medical Geneticist Locator. The educational and public health programs of the American College of Medical Genetics are dependent upon charitable gifts from corporations, foundations, and individuals. The American College of Medical Genetics Foundation (www.acmgfoundation.org) is a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organization dedicated to funding the College's diverse efforts to translate genes into health. The Foundation is dedicated to Better Health Through Genetics™.

SOURCE American College of Medical Genetics