Ruth Margalit, M.D., and Shinobu Watanabe-Galloway, Ph.D., have taken on new roles in the College of Public Health, Dean Ayman El-Mohandes, M.B.B.Ch., M.D., M.P.H., announced recently.
Dr. Margalit was named director of the newly created Inter-professional Service Learning Academy and Dr. Watanabe-Galloway assumed the newly created post of director of doctoral programs.
Both appointments were effective Oct. 1 and are part of the college’s continued accreditation effort, Dr. El-Mohandes said.
Academy to provide multifaceted learning experience
The Inter-professional Service Learning Academy will provide students with an inter-professional and interdisciplinary learning experience while addressing community-identified needs. It will:
- Facilitate collaborative partnerships between the university and external communities;
- Enhance student learning;
- Advance community health; and
- Foster civic engagement among students and faculty.
"Service Learning is not another volunteering in the community activity; it is both a philosophy and a teaching methodology that allow students to make connections between what they are learning in the classroom and what they experience through service," Dr. Margalit said. "Service-Learning has an equal focus on both the service that is being provided and the learning that is taking place, and with critical reflection, can enhance cognitive mastery of academic concepts."
Dr. Watanabe-Galloway to develop standard approaches
In her role, Dr. Watanabe-Galloway will focus on core competencies for doctoral students and maintain a standard approach for admissions, a clear interdisciplinary focus and uniformity across doctoral programs.
"There is a lot of energy in the college as we work towards accreditation," Dr. Watanbe-Galloway said. "We are concentrating on transdisciplinary approaches for students and faculty to collaborate across colleges and units. This concept is critical for health research and public health practice."
As the state’s only academic health science center, UNMC is on the leading edge of health care. Breakthroughs are possible because hard-working researchers, educators and clinicians are resolved to work together to fuel discovery. In 2009, UNMC’s extramural research support topped $100 million for the first time, resulting in the creation of 3,600 jobs in Nebraska. UNMC’s academic excellence is shown through its award-winning programs, and its educational programs are responsible for training more health professionals practicing in Nebraska than any other institution. Through its commitment to education, research, patient care and outreach, UNMC and its hospital partner, The Nebraska Medical Center, have established themselves as one of the country’s leading health care centers. UNMC’s physician practice group, UNMC Physicians, includes 550 physicians in 50 specialties and subspecialties who practice primarily in The Nebraska Medical Center. For more information, go to UNMC’s Web site at www.unmc.edu.
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