It’s not your typical summer job, but it is one that Kelsie Skow relished.
A graduate of the University of Nebraska Medical Center High School Alliance and Thomas Jefferson High School in Council Bluffs, Skow spent six weeks working in the lab of researcher William Rizzo, M.D., professor of pediatrics for UNMC and the Munroe-Meyer Institute.
Dr. Rizzo studies Sjogren-Larsson Syndrome, a rare disease characterized by dry, scaly skin, developmental disabilities, stiffness and involuntary muscle spasms.
“It was an amazing experience. I mean how many high school kids can say hey, guess what I did during my summer vacation?” Skow said.
Skow was one of five UNMC High School Alliance students who opted to work in research labs during the summer. Along with Dr. Rizzo, other researchers who opened their doors to the students include: Matt Kelso, Ph.D., assistant professor, UNMC College of Pharmacy, who hosted two students, Melissa Laughlin and Noam Margalit; Julie Oestreich, Ph.D., assistant professor, UNMC College of Pharmacy, who took in Mackenzie Wyatt; and Bernice Yates, Ph.D., professor, UNMC College of Nursing, who hosted Lucia Rodriguez.
“The generosity of these four scientists made the summer research experience for our High School Alliance students memorable. It is the commitment of people like them that make this endeavor the success that it is,” said Sara Cizek Going, UNMC Government Relations.
The best part of the summer, Skow said, came when she found a new mutation in one of the patient samples sent to Dr. Rizzo’s lab for research analysis.
“I couldn’t believe it when I found the abnormality. I was standing right next to Dr. Rizzo when he said, ‘Oh you have to look at this.’ And then I saw it. I was so elated,” she said.
Skow went straight home from the lab that evening and told her aunt and grandmother, “Guess what I did today? I found a mutation!”
“It means so much to me that I was able to do that,” she said.
Skow enters the University of Iowa this week, where she plans to major in nursing and minor in Spanish.
The High School Alliance is a partnership between UNMC, nine metropolitan area school districts and an educational service unit. The goal of the alliance is to give high school juniors and seniors an opportunity to take college-level courses in preparation for careers in health care.
The courses – specifically designed for high school students – are taught by UNMC faculty on the medical center campus. The program provides a unique hands-on learning experience that is different from what students would have access to at their high school.