Our Story

In Hartford, and now equipped with 3 Masters, 1 post graduate Diploma and a Bachelors, Mr. Kocherla organized state-of-the-art research and clinical testing laboratories that would eventually process thousands of patient samples in the days to come. During the years in Hartford Mr. Kocherla collaborated with world class physicians including Dr. Peter Hotez (Genetics, Immunology), Dr. Godfrey Pearlson (Psychiatry), Dr. Paul Thompson (Cardiology), Dr. Gualberto Ruano (Personalized Medicine and Entrepreneurship), and Dr. Cunegundo Vergara (Internal Medicine and Women's Health). Peer-reviewed papers in medical journals, presentations at national meetings, and patents resulted.

Sometimes colleagues' children, many in their college and high school years, spent time in his lab after school. The throwback picture shows Mr. Kocherla his collaborators and students from 2008. Many have gone to pursue doctoral studies in the fields ranging from Pharmacy to Biology to Medicine. The hours of mentoring post-doctoral students, graduate students, undergraduate and high-schoolers interested in genetics and laboratory medicine, led to an epiphany. Mr. Kocherla envisioned a more formal way of passing his knowledge on to generations to come. At this juncture the seed was truly planted to develop a teaching wing for students called "Center for DNA-Guided Medicine."

In the year 2015 the Center for DNA-Guided Medicine moved into its own state-of-the-art facility at 10 Jefferson St. adjacent to Hartford Hospital's Education and Simulation Center, with Research and Clinical facilities licensed by the Connecticut Dept. of Public Health and Certified by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. Here students are exposed to state-of-the-art equipment worth millions of dollars, where they are trained, and their scientific knowledge is cultivated.

Over time, as a handful of students increased to dozens, Mr. Kocherla continued to assemble a group of interested, qualified, and accomplished colleagues, including a mature and experienced team of Doctors and Board-Certified individuals who share the same vision as he —which is to educate the next generation of high and middle-schoolers to help them realize the dream of a career in health care.

Mr. Kocherla, with his team of scientist/educators, finds these young teenagers full of energy and showing the grit to succeed. A typical day in our science program shows kids love to interact and bounce back their ideas. Solving medical case studies provides an enriched growth medium to delve deeper into the field of research and development. Some students go on to publish papers at collegiate level journals while others aspire to obtaining internships at coveted institutions to leverage the learnt concepts. Pictured below is growing body of high-schoolers beaming with confidence as they plan to step into their college careers.

The overwhelming response from parents stirred the Center for DNA-Guided Medicine to plan on dedicating more than 10,000 square footage of laboratory space to kids interested in developing a career in allied health care. Come, Learn and Prosper is our mantra for the kids. This is our story that never ends but keeps getting bigger and bigger.

Learn more about our carefully-planned and expert-designed program. Or contact us to find out why students, driven by a passion for science, are joining us. We look forward to seeing you join us on a journey that is rife with scientific exploration and opportunities. Read all about the success stories of our former students.