UNMC takes steps to improve science literacy in Nebraska

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The U.S. Department of Education released a report earlier this year that showed science literacy levels among American students were lower than they are among students in many other countries.

Meanwhile, science and technology continue to take on larger roles in the lives of all Americans. And on the horizon looms an aging population that the nation will have to care for with a shortage of health care workers.

All of this points to a need for a more scientifically literate populace, which is a goal in UNMC’s strategic plan. To implement this goal, a team composed of UNMC faculty and staff as well as community leaders from the Omaha area has been formed.

“A public armed with facts and understanding of science is better able to appreciate and apply scientific advances and to vote knowledgeably on ballot issues and initiatives related to science,” said UNMC’s James Turpen, Ph.D., the leader of the science literacy team. “As the state’s academic health sciences center, it’s natural for us to be among the leading proponents for science literacy in Nebraska.”

The 17-member team has met since the summer and identified three areas of focus:

• Providing assistance and resources to the state’s elementary and secondary school science teachers;
  
• Establishing public education programs to increase interest in science among young adults; and
  
• Creating a mobile science laboratory that serves as an educational resource for students around the state.

Team member Brenda Zabel — a teacher and chairwoman of the science department at Omaha’s Westside High School — works to develop resources that provide the state’s science teachers information regarding science enrichment and science competitions for students and teachers.

A page on the Nebraska Department of Education Web site that provides science teachers such information is one of the resources Zabel’s work group is exploring.

“Our hope is that this resource will … provide a ‘one-stop shopping’ location for Nebraska science teachers to decide what they need to provide the most appropriate educational experiences for their students in the areas of science literacy,” Zabel said.

Team players The members of the UNMC Science Literacy Team and their affiliations are: James Turpen, Ph.D., UNMC; Linda Sather, Ed.D., UNMC; Donald Klepser, Ph.D., UNMC; Roxanna Jokela, UNMC; Shawn Smith, UNMC; Sonya Smith, J.D., UNMC; Maurice Godfrey, Ph.D., UNMC; Amber Donnelly, Ph.D., UNMC; Renee Fry, J.D., UNMC Jim Woodland, Nebraska Department of Education; Dan Sitzman, Omaha Public Schools; Judy Williams, a retired science teacher from Central City; Brenda Zabel, Westside High School; Leeann Vaughan, Omaha Public Schools; Victoria Kohout, Nebraska Coalition for Lifesaving Cures; Sandy Goodman, Nebraska Coalition for Lifesaving Cures; Amy Recker, Bio Nebraska Life Sciences Association.

Team member Victoria Kohout is executive director of the Nebraska Coalition for Lifesaving Cures. As a group, the coalition has stepped up to help the science literacy push by donating $20,000 to support science teacher programs and science meets around the state.

“UNMC has been a pioneer in the promotion of science literacy for more than a decade. While we have developed early student interest and high school science teacher programs through the years, limited resources have limited participation,” said committee member Roxanna Jokela, director of the Rural Health Education Network (RHEN) at UNMC and interim director of UNMC Alumni Affairs. “This year we were fortunate to receive a donation from the Coalition for Life Saving Cures to support our regional eighth grade science meets and to increase the number of science teachers participating in our science teacher workshops.”

As a team member, Kohout serves on a work group that aims to launch a mobile science lab that will tour the state and expose students to science experiments they may not experience in their schools.

“We need to cultivate interest in science among our students, encourage them to pursue careers in science then get them to stay in the state,” Kohout said.

Linda Sather, Ed.D., assistant professor in the College of Nursing Department of Community Based Health, leads a work group that wants to boost interest in science among young adults.

One way the group aims to do this is by hosting “Science Cafes,” which are informal science discussions at local coffeehouses and bars that feature health care experts.

The first two “Science Cafes” will be held Feb. 3 and Feb. 10 at the Slowdown in Omaha. Both events will feature discussions about the human brain. UNMC neurosurgeon William Thorell, M.D., will present the Feb. 3 event and UNMC neurologist Sanjay Singh, M.D., will talk on Feb. 10.

“We want to engage young adults and show them some of the very real roles science and medicine play in their lives,” Dr. Sather said.

Bob Bartee, vice chancellor of external affairs at UNMC, praised the committee for their efforts to increase the public knowledge and understanding of science.

“Dr. Turpen and his team have worked very hard in a short period of time to address this very important issue,” Bartee said. “I’m also very gratified to see several members of the team come from the community. With an aging population and a shortage of health care workers, the need to understand science and medicine is more important than ever. I’m happy this diverse and dedicated group is working hard to spread this message throughout the state.”