Our newest CPET additions

In 2009 we were awarded a grant from NIH NCRR SEPA for our new program Biomedical Explorations: Bench to Bedside (here and here). This summer we welcome our first Bench to Bedside cohort of teachers to investigate how a therapeutic, whether a drug or device, travels from the bench to the bedside. So this new professional development program is one new addition, and its addition brings another.

UF CPET is comprised of a very small staff so when we add another member to our eclectic bunch, it is cause for celebration. Bench to Bedside afforded us the opportunity to bring Dr. Kim Golart on board. Kim will be the Bench to Bedside liaison, working with program participants in their classrooms to assist with action research proposal implementation during the school year. She is a welcome addition to the UF CPET family and an individual all participants will enjoy working with.

Busy times at UF CPET

Spring is definately in the air here in Gainesville. The warm sunny days have returned and with them the anticipation of another busy summer at UF. We have three great professional development opportunities scheduled: Bench to Bedside, ICORE: Emerging Pathogens, and Summer Science Institute: Aquatic Solutions. Check them out and join us!

And of course, we have our summer programs for students as well. The Student Science Training Program and Science Quest are still accepting applications.

Update on our sea turtle

I have been keeping an eye on our sea turtle, Erika, who was rescued last summer by our wonderful Summer Science Institute teachers and transported to the Georgia Sea Turtle Center. She has her own page under the current patients link. I had issues viewing the page using Internet Explorer, but the good folks there suggested using Firefox which worked perfectly. In case you are using IE as well, Stefanie sent along the following update:

Here is Erika's current information from the webpage:

Erika is an adult female loggerhead sea turtle who was found floating on the inshore side of Seahorse Key near the University of Florida’s Marine lab dock on July 10, 2009. Erika was named after our former Hospital Coordinator, Erika Kemler. A group of teachers found her while out kayaking and brought her to shore. After being evaluated we determined that she was floating due to a large amount of air in her body cavity presumed to be secondary to a lung tear. This is a very common problem in sea turtles and one of the most common causes of buoyancy abnormalities. It is thought that these tears occur as a result of blunt force trauma such as a boat strike. We have been removing the air from Erika’s body cavity on a regular basis, sometimes up to 45,000 ml with a needle and syringe. In most cases these tears will heal in a much shorter time period than has been the case with Erika. Unfortunately, when she first arrived, Erika was very depressed and not eating on her own. She was a challenge to tube feed due to her size and often regurgitated. Finally, after months of tube feeding, she began eating on her own and is now a healthy 215 pounds! We have actually had to cut back on her diet due to her being slightly over weight. Her attitude and activity level have improved dramatically. We are giving her some time to see if she will be able to heal the tear on her own. Last Friday (November 13) we aspirated 12,000 ml of air from both sides of her body cavity and she became lower in the water column and seems to be remaining low. This may indicate that the leak has at least slowed down some and possibly some healing has taken place. We will continue to draw air out more aggressively if it continues to help her buoyancy problem. If she continues to float, we may have to take more drastic measures such as surgically repairing the lung via a laparoscope. Cross your fingers.

I can also tell you that currently Erika is still floating and we have stopped aspirating air, as it didn't seem to be helping. We conducted an open MRI ~ 1 month ago (brain scan and back end) but it was inconclusive. We are also currently looking to schedule a laparoscopy in ~1 month, to see if there is a tear in the lung and if so, try to fix it.

Let's keep pulling for her. Hopefully she will mend soon and be able to be released.

UF's Dr. Morris visits MIT

There is a wealth of information available in the blogosphere...and some fun reading. I was reading one of the blog posts from The Intersection and saw the name J. Glenn Morris. I backed up and re-read. Yep, our Emerging Pathogens Institute Director, Dr. Morris, was visiting MIT and presented information regarding the abundance of E. coli present even in seemingly cooked hamburger. Bottom line: carry a meat thermometer with you if you think you might order a hamburger!

Alachua County tops the state for kid flu vaccines

I'm so proud of my county and my university.

Several years ago, a flu campaign was initiated by our beloved Dr. Parker Small. His goal: vaccinate the school children and prevent the spread of influenza through the community. This year, with the support of the Emerging Pathogens Institute, Florida Department of Health and the Alachua County school system, free vaccinations were administered to our students. Even in the private schools, nose tickles were given early in the fall. Kudos to all involved. There is a small article in The Gainesville Sun.

I had the opportunity to sit next to Dr. Glenn Morris during a dinner last week and spoke to him about the vaccination effort. He was very pleased with the results and the community effort that was involved. One advantage we have here at the University of Florida...lots of students! Graduate and professional students in the Health Science Center were instrumental in talking with parents, getting forms signed, and helping with classroom management.

Kid's Challenge

There are so many fantastic competitions for students to become involved with. The Kid's Challenge is a great one. The website has many resources for students and teachers. The grade range is geared more toward upper elementary/middle school, but we can all learn something. The deadline is very near for this year, but perhaps you will want to consider incorporating the idea in your curriculum for next year. Who wouldn't want a free planetarium for the classroom?!

The deadline for the Kids' Science Challenge is February 27th, 2010. The KSC is a free national competition for third to sixth graders, funded by the National Science Foundation. Students enter their ideas in three science fields: Bio-Inspired Designs, Detective Science and Imagining Sports on Mars.
If their idea is chosen, they visit and collaborate with scientists and engineers to see the idea come alive. Last year's winners were featured on NPR and the Today Show!

The first thousand students who enter receive free hands-on activity kits. We have about 200 kits left, but they are going fast!
We also have 8 classroom prizes left (including microscopes and planetaria) for teachers who send in 25 entries or more from their classes.

On our website, kidsciencechallenge.com you'll find entry forms, videos, downloadable activities, educational games and curricula aligned to national standards. Kids can enter individually or as teams. Thousands of students and educators have participated in the KSC and downloaded our curricula, including many NSTA members - see our ad in the January issue of Science and Children.

Emerging Pathogens Institute

The University of Florida Center for Precollegiate Education and Training (UF CPET) is pleased to announce applications are being accepted for our ICORE professional development opportunity.

The Interdisciplinary Center for Ongoing Research/Education (ICORE) Partnership is an exciting new opportunity for high school teachers, funded by a grant from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, to engage in innovative and continuing professional development. The theme for the 2010 program is Emerging Pathogens, an area of cutting-edge and active research with ‘real world’ implications for Florida residents.

Teachers will perform hands-on research with scientists involved in the identification, understanding, and management of emerging pathogens; incorporate these ideas into classroom-ready modules; and present the results of their experiences to colleagues at professional meetings. ICORE also offers continuing university partnership support to teachers throughout the academic year and beyond.

An expanded program overview is below. More information, including the application materials, can be found at http://www.cpet.ufl.edu/ICORE/default.html

There are a limited number of seats. The ICORE program is open to all Florida high school teachers, but most appropriate for science and health related subjects. There is no registration cost; transportation and meals are the responsibility of the participants. On-campus housing is provided. Applications should be submitted as soon as possible; selections will be made on a rolling basis until all positions are filled.

HHMI ICORE Summer Institute: July 11 – 23, 2010
Gainesville, FL
Contact: Julie Bokor, julie@cpet.ufl.edu or 352.392.2310
http://www.cpet.ufl.edu/ICORE/default.html


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Program Overview
The ICORE partnership program offers outcome-oriented professional development for high school teachers through collaborations with researchers across Florida. The initial program is organized around studies of Emerging Pathogens, a topic of major importance to the health and economy of Florida and the nation. The ICORE Partnership is designed to provide long-term collaborations, experiences, and resources to assist teachers in improving science education, and to offer ongoing opportunities and incentives for teachers to engage in laboratory workshops and earn graduate credit towards a Certificate in Biotechnology Education. Institute modules will focus on human, animal, and plant pathogens through laboratory investigations using the content and skills of biotechnology, structural biology, bioinformatics, host-parasite interactions, and translational research.

Teacher responsibilities:
• Attend the two-week HHMI ICORE Summer Institute at UF and create an Action Proposal, incorporating current research focused on emerging pathogens into a classroom-ready unit
• Implement Action Proposals in classroom with graduate student assistance; provide inservice training to other school and district teachers; share progress with ICORE program participants and coordinators.
• Present the outcome of Action Proposals at the annual Junior Science, Engineering and Humanities Symposium (JSEHS) held at UF (February 2011)

Upon completion of the ICORE program, teachers will receive:
• Access to biotechnology equipment lockers and professional support for classroom activities
• A $200 grant to implement action proposals
• A student field trip to UF Special Explorations for Teachers and Students (SETS), Florida Atlantic University (FAU), or the Ft. Lauderdale Research and Education Center
• Continued communication and assistance from UF and FAU partners (grad students, staff, researchers)
• Expertise and support in modifying curricula aligned with national and state standards
• Priority seating in teacher workshops offered by the UF Center for Precollegiate Education and Training (CPET)
• Opportunity to participate in summer research internships in laboratories at UF, FAU and industrial sites
• Three credits towards a Graduate Certificate in Biotechnology Education, further graduate studies, and/or Florida teacher recertification