NHS Research Interest Groups

Assistive Technology for Individuals with Disabilities (ATID) RIG

Contact person:  Dr. Kathleen Fahey (kathy.fahey@unco.edu)

Description:  Programs in natural, health, and human sciences share an underlying belief that independent and quality living is a primary goal of all individuals.  Access to and successful use of assistive technologies provides an important avenue to the achievement of this goal for all, and especially for those who have disabilities.  Community members and agencies that support the use of assistive technologies are invited to work in collaborative fashion with university faculty and students to advance the accessibility and successful application of assistive technology to daily life goals. 

Particular activities include:

• Develop and submit grant proposals that address
  • the development of new assistive technologies
  • application of existing technologies to new populations
  • collaborative systems for assisting individuals with the procurement and use of assistive technologies.
• Develop and conduct outcome research studies on the effectiveness of assistive technology in improving independence and quality living.
• Become a center for the design, implementation, and dissemination of research on assistive technology. 
• Strengthen college, university, and community collaboration through educational programs and outreach activities for faculty, students, and community members.
• Partner with local agencies to provide expertise in discipline specific assessment, procurement, and use of assistive technologies within a family-centered model. 
• Involve undergraduate and graduate students in all opportunities related to the RIG.
• Strengthen university/community collaborations through education and outreach activities.

Eliminating Health Disparities RIG

Contact person: Dr. Ashley Walker (ashley.walker@unco.edu)

Description: To create research opportunities focused on identifying solutions to eliminate health disparities through community collaborations and to collaborate with other UNC faculty members who share interests in health disparities, community-based participatory research, action research, marginalized populations, health promotion for people with disabilities, and/or the impact of social determinants on health.

GeoReach RIG

Contact persons: Dr. Steven Anderson (Steven.Anderson@unco.edu) and Julie Sexton (pamoika@hotmail.com)

Description: GeoReach is a new weekly discussion group of those interested in geoscience education research. During these weekly discussion meetings, we envision that group members will share geoscience education research data they have collected and need help analyzing or interpreting, brainstorm geoscience education research ideas, and discuss published geoscience education research. We will schedule an informal presentation for each meeting to generate discussion. The ultimate goal will be to develop new research proposals and published papers, and build teams that can approach geosciences research from a fresh, innovative perspective.

Instrumentation & Investigative Sciences RIG

Contact persons: Dr. Kim Pacheco (kimberly.pacheco@unco.edu), Dr. Bill Hoyt (william.hoyt@unco.edu) and Ken Cochran (kenneth.cochran@unco.edu)

Description: With the recent or pending acquisition of many new research instruments in Ross Hall, the entire UNC community of scholars (not just the hard sciences) can benefit from collaborative research and teaching opportunities now available right here in Greeley. Instruments recently upgraded or acquired include: Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM), X-Ray Diffractometer (XRD), 5 Atomic Force Microscopes (AFM), Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR), and many others. Additional disciplines and new major emphasis areas such as Forensic Science, Criminal Justice, Anthropology, Archaeology, Geography, Sport & Exercise Sciences, and several others have various applications of these instruments.

Capacity of UNC to support a variety of research has markedly increased, and the goal of this research group is to facilitate full use of these instruments. Increased opportunities for publications and attraction of outside funding should be enabled by these new or upgraded instruments. Providing faculty time to learn applications of these new instruments and keeping the instruments operational are challenges that need to be addressed by the RIG.

Positive Youth Development RIG

Contact Person: Dr. Bob Brustad (bob.brustad@unco.edu)

Description: Programs of positive youth development share a common underlying belief that intervention programs for youth should seek to develop and cultivate strengths and assets that will help youth to grow and flourish throughout their lives. In this regard, youth are viewed as community resources who will contribute and thrive to the extent to which they are provided with opportunities to maximize their potential and develop lifelong skills that transcend any given risk or challenge.

Intervention programs target goals such as resilience, conflict resolution abilities, collective problem solving skills, positive sense of self, and community engagement because such skills and capacities are of benefit across situations and contexts. This research interest group seeks to facilitate opportunities for positive youth development through school-based and afterschool community programs. Programs of intervention will focus extensively upon opportunities within the sport and physical activity domain but will not be limited to this domain.

The goals of this research interest group are to:

• Provide youth with meaningful opportunities for personal development through school-based and community-based opportunities coordinated by peer and adult mentors and leaders
• Become a center for the design, implementation and dissemination of research on youth development. A major focus will be upon developing grant proposals that can provide valuable growth experiences for children and adolescents in the community and contribute to our knowledge base about best practices in youth development.
• Strengthen university/community linkages and facilitate access to the university for youth and families who might not otherwise have this linkage.

The Alliance seeks partners who:

• Serve youth in some capacity.
• View sport and physical activity as educational tools and vehicles to teach life skills.
• Desire to collaborate on a long-term initiative or series of initiatives.
• Perceive a collaboration with the Alliance to be beneficial in pursuing a common agenda.

References:
Hellison, D., Cutforth, N., Kallusky, J., Martinek, T., Parker, M. & Stiehl, J. (2000). Youth development & physical activity: Linking universities & communities. Champaign, IL: Human Kinetics.

Brustad, R., & Parker, M. (2005). Enhancing positive youth development through sport and physical activity. Psychologica, 39, 75-93.

Parker, M. & Stiehl, J. (2005). Personal and social responsibility. In J. Lund & D. Tannehill (Eds.). Standards-based physical education curriculum. Sudbury, MA: Jones and Bartlett.

Teaching in the Natural and Health Sciences (TNHS) RIG

Contact persons:  Dr. Bill Blubaugh (bill.blubaugh@unco.edu) and Lori Reinsvold (lori.reinsvold@unco.edu) 

Description: As teaching and research related to teaching (K-20) is a primary mission of the University and the College, collaborative research efforts among faculty from the five schools in the College and with faculty from other colleges towards the improvement in instruction in the sciences will be the focus of the TNHS RIG.  The university is designated as the primary teacher training institution in the state by CCHE and is expected to deliver, research supported, undergraduate and graduate content education programs for pre-service and in-service teachers.  The university has historically maintained high quality and collaborative relationships with education leaders across the state and the country, and with school districts in the state, with the goal of improving teaching, learning, and the curriculum of mathematics and sciences. 

Teaching students (K-20) in the Health Sciences (Human Sciences, Nursing, and Sport and Exercise Science) have common challenges and instructional needs with teaching the Natural Sciences (Biology, Chemistry, Earth Sciences, Mathematical Sciences, and Physics).  Through collaborative research among faculty of the five Schools of our college, by outreaching to faculty from other colleges and to educational leaders from Colorado’s K-20 educational systems, successful experiences can be shared, and common research initiatives can be proposed.  As a result, the science of teaching can be advanced to a new height.  With assistance from SPARC and the University Foundation we have expanded opportunities for research and other related instructional support.
Particular areas of interest include:

• To provide quality baccalaureate and post-baccalaureate professional development through course offerings and research opportunities.
• Research the development, pedagogical value and cost effectiveness of on-line delivery in the natural and health sciences.
• To promote interest in post-secondary education in the sciences among K-12 students and particular to consider teaching mathematics or science as a career.
• To promote and development advancements in information and other technologies as they relate to K-12 outreach, teacher professional development, and undergraduate and graduate education.
• Research the development, pedagogical value, and cost effectiveness of on-line delivery in the natural and health sciences.
• To promote mathematical modeling in the sciences.
• To support culturally relevant mathematics and science curriculum resources and teaching strategies.
• To promote technical tools that support learning mathematics and science.
• (Obtain other “areas of interest from faculty of the Health Sciences)