Community Engagement

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Reflecting on the April 10 shooting: a message from President Schatzel

Louisville Skyline

The shooting in downtown Louisville on April 10 continues to shake all of us, especially those who were closest to the victims. Several members of our campus community were beloved family members and dear friends of the victims of the horrible attack. Please keep those injured or killed, those that love them, our fellow Cardinals and our entire Louisville community in your prayers and thoughts. I know you join me in sending our deepest condolences to those who lost a loved one so tragically in the shooting.

I want to make sure to recognize and appreciate the heroic actions of those in our community who responded quickly, bravely and professionally in the early moments of the horrific attack and throughout the day. 

I know you all join me in offering our tremendous gratitude to the courageous officers of Louisville Metro Police Department who rushed into the Old National Bank Building, saving lives while putting themselves at great risk.

Within minutes, officers from our own UofL Police Department arrived to support LMPD. These brave members of our community worked quickly with LMPD to secure the scene itself as well as throughout the hospital district. I cannot say it often enough how greatly I appreciate our colleagues – the officers of ULPD – as each day they work tirelessly to keep our community safe.

We all recognize with deep gratitude the efforts of our colleagues at UofL Health – UofL Hospital – the trauma doctors, nurses and staff – who provided outstanding emergency medical care to those injured in the attack and continue to care for them. In our darkest moments, these heroes, as well as other first responders, exhibited true bravery and professionalism in serving their fellow citizens. I feel, as I know we all do, humbled by their actions and grateful to all of them. 

I want to remind everyone that asking for help, especially in times of trauma and stress, is a most important part of recovery. Help is available for those needing additional support. Students can call our Counseling Center at 502-852-6585 from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. or access  other options at https://louisville.edu/counseling/resources. Counseling for our faculty and staff is available through our Employee Assistance Program provider, Anthem EAP. Call 800-865-1044 or go to AnthemEAP.com > Select “Member Log In” > Type “University of Louisville.”  

As we all work to find a path forward in the midst of this tragedy, although I have only been a part of UofL for less than three months, I have great faith in our Cardinal and Louisville communities. I have quickly learned that Cardinals stick together, especially when they need each other most. Please take an extra moment to care for yourself, your classmates and your colleagues, and don’t hesitate to reach out to the university for support.

Sincerely,

Kim Schatzel, Ph.D.
President

Third-year law student talks about experience serving at the Trager-Brandeis Elder Law Clinic

Celebrating excellence in service through community engagement

BY UOFL SCHOOL OF MEDICINE NEWS, 03/29/23


Jason Beare, research manager in the department of Cardiovascular and Thoracic Surgery, was awarded the 2023 Outstanding Community Engagement Award in the staff category at the 8th Annual Engaged Scholarship Symposium sponsored by the University of Louisville Office of Community Engagement on March 24, 2023. The intent of the Community Engagement Award is to recognize exemplary contributions that impact the well-being of the community or individuals in the community. Beare received a monetary award and his name added to a permanent recognition display in Ekstrom Library on UofL’s Belknap campus.

A 14-year employee of the University and longstanding UofL Staff Senator, Beare and his wife, Melissa, created the Louisville Honor Earned, Remembrance Owed (H.E.R.O.) Run/Walk/Ruck 5K to honor military personnel while supporting Kentuckiana-area veterans and dependent students. The event was first held in June 2022 with nearly three hundred participants, including virtual runners from Kentucky, Indiana, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Kosovo, and Horn of Africa.

Through the inaugural event, Beare raised more than $12,000 to benefit veterans and veteran dependents. A $7,500 donation was awarded to Veterans Club, Inc. to assist local veterans who have fallen on financial hardships. Numerous local veterans received life-changing support thanks to the donation, including a new HVAC unit for a disabled veteran caring for his spouse with severe asthma, housing assistance for a veteran and his family living in a storage unit, and food assistance for an elderly disabled veteran.

“What is more amazing,” said Kyle Hurwitz, director of the Center for Military-Connected Students, “is the enduring impact their actions will have on UofL students through their $5,000 H.E.R.O. Run/Walk/Ruck 5K contribution to UofL’s Salute to Service scholarship fund for veteran and dependent students.” Awarded for the first-time in fall 2022, the scholarship is changing lives. The first recipient was a Freshman Music Therapy major, and youngest daughter of a deceased veteran. The student is a Type 1 Diabetic, struggling to afford insulin and continuous glucose monitoring. The scholarship is allowing her to not have to choose between medical care and tuition bills and is enabling her to continue her education.

Beare was also able to bring positive attention to the University of Louisville campus, partnering with various offices in support of the event. University Athletics were involved in hosting the Start/Finish line at Cardinal Track Stadium. UofL Police provided security officers and police officers for road closures and overall safety. UofL Parking provided the barricades for road closures, and also offered free parking in the Floyd Street garage for all race participants.

“Melissa and I had no idea what to expect when we started talking about creating a charity 5K event for veterans,” said Beare. “We thought we’d be lucky to get 100 participants and donate a couple thousand dollars. The support of the UofL community has been a humbling and rewarding experience, and truly helped grow the Louisville H.E.R.O. Run beyond our wildest expectations. The 2023 event will be even bigger and better.”

The School of Medicine recognizes the importance of supporting our community, and we are proud of the engagement that Jason Beare has achieved through his service to veterans in the city of Louisville. The next Louisville H.E.R.O. Run/Walk/Ruck 5K will occur on June 3, 2023 to close out Memorial week.

 

Dental student honored for community service

American Council on Education leader Marisol Morales to keynote 8th Annual UofL Engaged Scholarship Symposium

Central High School students in Pre-Medical Magnet Program receive white coats at UofL

Central High School students in Pre-Medical Magnet Program receive white coats at UofL

UofL receives nearly $1.2 million from Humana Foundation to address community’s heart health

Signature Partnership event shows JCPS students how to take control of their lives

SPOTLIGHT– A&S Faculty in Community Engaged Scholarship and Activities

 

Pictured left to right: Douglas Craddock, Sarah Emery, Julia Kachanova, William Scott Gunter, Megan Poole, David Johnson, Lora Haynes, Haily Culp, Cara Synder, Lyrah Fosl, Melanie Gast, Rebecka Bloomer, and Shelby Pumphrey. 

BY SHERRI WALLACE, Ph.D


In 2022, The College of Arts and Sciences had several stellar faculty, graduate, and undergraduate students involved in a range of uniquely defined community engaged scholarship (CES) projects and activities, awarded grants from the Office of Community Engagement (OCE) to support their initiatives.

In West Louisville, Sarah Emery, Professor in Biology, collaborating with Julia Kachanova, doctoral candidate in Biology, received a $1,000 grant on an IRB-approved dissertation project, “West Louisville Urban Orchards.”  William Scott Gunter, Assistant Professor in Geographic & Environmental Sciences, collaborating with Megan Poole, Assistant Professor in English, received a $2,999 grant to work on curricular engagement around the topic of “Rubbertown Citizen-led Science Project on Air.” David Johnson, Assistant Professor in the School of Public Health, and Information Sciences, received a $3,000 grant for a research collaboration entitled, “Research on Solar Installation in West Louisville Neighborhoods,” with Angela Storey, Associate Professor in Anthropology, and Lauren Heberle, Associate Professor in Sociology.

A few other CES activities centered on the unhoused. Lora Haynes, Professor in Psychology, received a $,3000 grant for cross-college curricular engagement, “Family Resiliency Curriculum at a Homeless Shelter,” in collaboration with Hailey Culp, MA candidate in UofL College of Education & Human Development and Denise Simmel, Co-Director & Community Volunteer at Hotel Louisville. Also, Cara Snyder, Assistant Professor in Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies, received $3,000 for a curricular engagement and research initiative on “LGBTQ+ Youth Houselessness” in collaboration with Lyrah Fosl, graduate research assistant in Human Health Equity Innovation Hub, and Savannah Quach, undergraduate student.

Melanie Gast, Associate Professor in Sociology, received a $2,998 grant to develop and draft policy briefs and conduct a media campaign on “Louisville Metro’s Youth Engagement Services,” an inter- and cross-disciplinary collaboration with the School of Public Health and Information Sciences, Department of Health Promotion & Behavioral Sciences faculty Dr. Rebecka Bloomer along with graduate students Cat Alexander and James Joyce, and undergraduate student Jada Harris in Sociology.  And, Shelby Pumphrey, Assistant Professor in Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies, received a $1,000 grant to create a series of community trainings and seminars on “Community Herbal Gathering.”

The uniqueness of these community-engaged research and teaching projects is that they are all addressing a critical community need while providing research opportunities for faculty and engaged learning for students. Grantees will have the opportunity to present about their community-engaged work at the Annual Engaged Scholarship Symposium coordinated by the Office of Community Engagement.

Keynote Speaker Announced for 2023 Engaged Scholarship Symposium

The Annual Engaged Scholarship Symposium is an opportunity to network and share current research and teaching activities involving community partners and service to the community. Please join us for a day of panel presentations, lightning talks, and recognition of UofL faculty in community-engaged scholarship and sustainability.

Keynote Speaker –Marisol Morales, Ed.D.    

  

Dr. Marisol Morales currently serves as the Executive Director of the Carnegie Elective Classifications for the American Council on Education (ACE). In this role Morales provides conceptual leadership and operational oversight to the Carnegie Elective Classifications. This includes the collaborative development of and responsibility for all initiatives, oversight and facilitation of relevant national and international advisory committees, conceptualizing and implementing extensive data archives as well as developing and enacting a shared vision regarding access to and use of the knowledge produced by the Carnegie Elective Classifications to beneficially guide research, policy, and practice. Prior to this role she was the Vice President for Network Leadership at Campus Compact, from 2018-2022. Morales was the Founding Director of the Office of Civic and Community Engagement at the University of La Verne from 2013-2018 and the Associate Director of the Steans Center for Community-based Service Learning and Community Service Studies at DePaul University from 2005-2013.  In 2020, she was appointed as a Visiting Assistant Professor of Community-Engaged Scholarship at University of Central Florida and also serves as an adjunct faculty in the ENLACE Higher Education Master’s program at Northeastern Illinois University. Morales sits on the editorial board of the Michigan Journal of Community Service Learning, on the editorial advisory board of Liberal Education, a publication of the Association of American Colleges and Universities, and on the board of the International Association for Research on Service Learning and Community Engagement (IARSLCE). Locally, she serves as the chair of the Puerto Rican Agenda of Chicago’s Education subcommittee and on the alumni board of the Center for Latino Research and the Latin American and Latino Studies program at DePaul University. Dr. Morales holds a BA in Latin American/Latino Studies and a MS/MS in International Public Service Management both from DePaul University. She earned her Ed.D. in Organizational Leadership from the University of La Verne. Her dissertation focused on the community engagement experiences of Latinx students at a Hispanic Serving Institution.

Getting out of class: Engaged learning experiences support student success

Getting out of class: Engaged learning experiences support student success

 

On a sunny afternoon Cala Salah is up to her elbows in the dirt. Far removed from textbooks, dry erase boards and computers, Salah, a public health major at UofL, harvests vegetables as part of her internship with the Food Literacy Project.

Her work’s purpose is twofold: it supports the organization’s mission to address disparities in access to health foods for traditionally excluded and marginalized populations; and it helps Salah fulfill the requirements she needs to graduate.

Salah’s work with the Food Literacy Project illustrates how the university supports the whole student through transformative, purpose-driven and engaged learning. UofL’s strategic plan emphasizes the need for robust engaged learning experiences to make the university a great place to learn for its students and a great place to connect to community and industry partners.

Engaged learning is nothing new at UofL, where many programs include engaged learning requirements in their curricula. The University Career Center serves nine of the university’s 12 colleges/schools, representing almost 16,000 undergraduate and graduate students in more than 50 academic units. The College of Business, J.B. Speed School of Engineering and Brandeis School of Law all have career centers serving their students specifically.

But the abundance of engaged learning opportunities available across campus, while a good problem to have, presented an opportunity to create a centralized solution to better serve students.

This fall, UofL opened the Center for Engaged Learning (CEL), designed as a first stop for students who want to enhance their learning experience beyond the classroom. The CEL comprises two offices, the Office of Undergraduate Research and Creative Activity and the Office of Experiential Learning. These offices partner with the Career Centers, Office of Community Engagement, Office of Study Abroad and International Travel, academic programs and several other units to connect students with engaged learning activities.

Paul DeMarco, interim director of the Office of Undergraduate Research and Creative Activity, served on strategic plan subcommittees focused on the need to engage every undergraduate student in meaningful experiential learning opportunities. Streamlining resources and processes to improve the student experience and their career prospects after graduation became a top priority of the groups.

“These are opportunities for students to apply what they learn in class to real-world problems,” DeMarco said.

DISCOVERING A PASSION

Madison Cicha, an environmental science major, completed a 10-week Summer Research Opportunity Program (SROP) directed by the CEL and the Office of Undergraduate Research and Creative Activity. The SROP provides students with a structured and immersive research experience with a faculty member, as well as weekly professional development seminars. For her research, Cicha worked with the Green Heart Louisville Project and the Christina Lee Brown Envirome Institute to measure how trees and other vegetation provide a sound buffer along heavily trafficked roadways in Louisville.

“It was a great opportunity to do this caliber of research, especially as an undergraduate student,” Cicha said. “The people I met at the Envirome Institute were great to work with, and I think that experience and those new relationships will set me up for my future goals.”

The mentoring she received from Ray Yeager, assistant professor in the Department of Environmental and Occupational Health Sciences and a contributor to Green Heart, provided her with much needed guidance on research that she would not have been able to learn on her own.

“Research opportunities are crucial for students to gain much needed skill sets outside of the classroom,” Yeager said. “Such experiential learning provides a transition to working independently, problem solving, personalized feedback and tailored opportunities that are invaluable for career preparation.”

Engaged learning does not stop with course requirements. According to Erica Gabbard, director of the Office of Experiential Learning, the CEL also helps students enrolled in programs without engaged learning opportunities find ways to apply their studies to professional experiences.

Sasha Gorchanyuk, a senior communication major with a minor in film studies, discovered her passion for and talent in working with corporate partnerships through her internship with the Louisville Bats Minor League Baseball team. Gorchanyuk knew she wanted experience in sports and was eager to learn about elements of the industry that were not familiar to her. Her internship allowed her to take on different roles in the front office including corporate partnerships, ticket sales, in-game entertainment and promotional activities.

Gorchanyuk, who will graduate in May 2023, places immense value in the engaged learning experience.

“I would advise students to say ‘yes’ to any internship opportunities,” she said. “I’ve completed internships ever since my sophomore year, and they have influenced who I am today and informed me on what I want to do after graduation.”

CONNECTING WITH THE COMMUNITY

The CEL is not just a resource for students. Community and industry partners often ask UofL for guidance on the best types of students (majors, talents, etc.) for their internship positions and how to create a meaningful engaged learning experience for both the student and the business.

The benefits of quality partnerships are seen through UofL alumni, such as Oliver Kratholm ’22. During the spring 2022 semester, Kratholm enrolled in a community internship course, which provided him with the opportunity to work with Seven Counties Services, a mental and behavioral health, substance abuse treatment and intellectual and developmental disabilities service.

He found firsthand exposure to the clinical setting was rewarding and enlightening.

“Being able to shadow professionals as they work with a variety of clients with different mental health concerns really sparked my interest for pursuing further education and a career in the field,” Kratholm said.

At the conclusion of the internship, he continued with Seven Counties. He is also doing work with a research lab at UofL and plans to eventually return to school to pursue a doctorate in clinical psychology.

The paint in the new CEL is still drying, but Gabbard and DeMarco are excited about the university’s new resource. The CEL is assembling an advisory board comprised of local community organizations, economic development representatives, industry partners and nonprofits which will help strengthen connections between the university and the community. Other goals include looking for opportunities to help faculty incorporate engaged learning in their coursework and finding other ways for UofL students to get more out of class by getting out of the classroom.

“UofL wants engaged learning to be more than a box to check on the road to graduation,” Gabbard said. “For our students, now is the time to test the waters, try new things and expand their skill set so they can confidently enter the workforce in the vocation they choose.”

EDITOR’S NOTE: Julie Heflin and Brad Knoop from the Office of Communications and Marketing as well as Stuart Esrock (retired) from the communication department and the University Career Center contributed to this article.

UofL jazz program continues to collaborate remotely with South American counterparts

Trager family pledges $1 million to UofL to fund urban micro-forest at Founders Square

UofL online social work student, U.S. Marine hopes to help older adults

U.S. Marine Corps Master Sergeant Cindia Fernandez
U.S. Marine Corps Master Sergeant Cindia Fernandez

Cindia Fernandez wears many hats. She is an active-duty U.S. Marine Corps Master Sergeant stationed at Camp Lejeune, N.C. She also is a UofL Online Master of Science in Social Work student, with the goal of becoming a Certified Gerontological Social Worker, addressing the challenges of the aging process by promoting independence, autonomy and dignity in later life. 

A passion to help others is central to her own life, demonstrated in part through a willingness a few years ago to donate a kidney to her father who had end-stage renal disease, a condition in which the kidneys function below 10 percent of normal ability.

In June 2004, Fernandez stepped up to serve in the U.S. Marine Corps, leaving for boot camp just 10 days after graduating high school. After this and follow-up training, she arrived at Marine Corps Base Hawaii in Kaneohe Bay. During her assignment, Fernandez deployed to Iraq in support of Operation Enduring Freedom with Marine Heavy Helicopter Squadron 362 (HMH-362), providing transport of combat troops, supplies and equipment during day and night operations.

During a later assignment in Montgomery, Ala., she was a part of an infantry company and oversaw training evolutions in preparation for combat operations, contingency operations, and humanitarian/peacekeeping operations, including national emergencies.

In 2012, Fernandez arrived at Parris Island, S.C., to support recruiting missions, and was selected to attend the University of South Carolina through the Marine Corps Degree Completion Program, receiving a bachelor’s degree in psychology.

Upon graduation, she was transferred to Marine Corps Air Station Miramar in San Diego, Calif., where she worked at the Professional and Personal Development Branch assisting Marines on educational program opportunities and offering transitional counseling services.

Her next assignment was in New Orleans, La., supporting the Marine Corps Reserve Forces administratively. Following that three-year assignment, she moved to her current role, as a Course Chief for the Marine Corps Center for Learning and Faculty Development, where she teaches Marines to become curriculum developers for their formal schoolhouses.

Fernandez enrolled in UofL’s Online Master of Science in Social Work in fall 2022 after an extensive college search process. When looking for an institution, she said UofL’s reputation was a major influencer in her decision.

Not only did UofL offer the degree she wanted to pursue but, “the Raymond A. Kent School of Social Work and Family Science ranks in the top 17 percent in the nation,” Fernandez said. “UofL also is one of the few universities that matches the DoD Tuition Assistance cap per semester hour for a master’s program.”

Fernandez says she is impressed with the assistance from staff and faculty at UofL, pointing to Kent School program coordinators Holly Eckert and Connie Cox as being extremely helpful, saying “they carefully explained the process and requirements of practicum and the expectations as a graduate student.”

UofL honors and celebrates Fernandez for her military service and is proud to recognize the 247th birthday of the U.S. Marine Corps on Nov. 10.

Central High School students experience life in the medical field by shadowing UofL doctors

Central High School student LaMya Hickman shadows Edward Miller, UofL assistant professor and director of maternal fetal medicine, at UofL Hospital
Central High School student LaMya Hickman shadows Edward Miller, UofL assistant professor and director of maternal fetal medicine, at UofL Hospital

The Central High School Pre-Medical Magnet Program is giving west Louisville students an up-close and personal experience with a career in medicine. Students are able to shadow UofL School of Medicine and UofL Health doctors during rounds at UofL Hospital, scrub into operating rooms and witness surgeries, and also get practice performing simpler procedures, like sutures through this immersive curriculum.

“The Central High School Pre-Medical Magnet Program is what I’ve dreamed of being able to create since I graduated medical school,” said Edward Miller, assistant professor and director of maternal fetal medicine at UofL and provider with UofL Physicians – OB/GYN & Women’s Health. “This is a chance for students in west Louisville to not only know doctors that look like them, but to call them a mentor and friend.”

“UofL Health is proud to support Central High School and inspire the next generation of health care workers,” said Tom Miller, UofL Health CEO. “This program complements our commitment to reduce barriers to care by reducing barriers for employment. Together, with our fully funded UofL tuition program, we are investing to ensure our community is well prepared for the future.”

The pre-medical pipeline program launched in August and offers educational opportunities, mentorship, college credit and hundreds of thousands of dollars in scholarships. Its creation is in partnership with UofL Health, the UofL School of Medicine, Falls City Medical Society and Jefferson County Public Schools (JCPS).

“I am so proud of our students and so excited to see their success,” Central High School Principal Dr. Tamela Compton said. “Our first pre-medical magnet class has already learned so much – from gaining hands-on first aid and emergency response experience in Central High School classrooms to scrubbing into surgeries at the hospital. Just two months into the program, these students are flourishing.”

More than 20 Central High seniors are currently rotating through different specialties, including OB/GYN, anesthesia and cardiothoracic surgery, while learning from UofL Health physicians and local physicians through the Falls City Medical Society. The Falls City Medical Society is committed to advancing the art and science of medicine for people of African descent and is playing a key role in ensuring student experience in the Pre-Medical Magnet Program is integrated into the Louisville physician community. Students shadow these physicians twice a week, earning college credit.

Later this month, the program will open up to Central High School juniors, who will rotate through each of the 10 core specialties.

“We are proud of our continued and strengthened partnership with Central High School and the opportunities it provides our faculty and students,” said Toni Ganzel, dean of the UofL School of Medicine. “Working alongside school administrators to enact quality learning for underserved youth is a strategic goal of the School of Medicine. We aim to fill our classrooms with diverse and talented students that reflect the world around us, and it is partnerships such as this that will create that transformative change.”

Students in the Central High School Magnet Career Academy (MCA) are selected for admission through a competitive process that includes achievement test scores, grade point average (GPA), personal essays and other teacher recommendations. Central has the second-highest number of Governor’s Scholars in the district. Central is one of two high schools in Kentucky to offer Montessori education.

“This program is already changing lives,” JCPS Superintendent Dr. Marty Pollio said. “Central’s pre-medical magnet students will graduate with knowledge many don’t gain until college. Opportunities like this are what we are working hard to provide to all JCPS students, so they graduate college and career ready.”

University of Louisville recognized for exemplary community engagement project

The Association of Public and Land-grant Universities has recognized the University of Louisville for its exemplary community engagement work at the health care clinic for racetrack workers at Churchill Downs.
The Association of Public and Land-grant Universities has recognized the University of Louisville for its exemplary community engagement work at the health care clinic for racetrack workers at Churchill Downs.

The Association of Public and Land-grant Universities has recognized the University of Louisville for its exemplary community engagement work at the health care clinic for racetrack workers at Churchill Downs.

Seeking to improve access to health care, the UofL School of Nursing spearheads efforts to partner with the Kentucky Racing Health and Welfare Fund to provide health care services to uninsured workers in the Kentucky horse racing industry. Many workers are non-English speaking with little access to health care or support finding health care. The partnership provides primary care, women’s health care, and mental health care to workers and their families as well as care focused on preventing costly chronic diseases such as diabetes, hypertension and asthma.

UofL School of Nursing faculty and advanced practice registered nurses Krista Roach and Dedra Hayden, who also serves as the program’s director, engage UofL Latin American and Latino Studies program students to help with interpretation, dental students to provide care to patients with complex dental cases, and nursing students to provide care alongside nurse practitioners. In addition to ongoing year-round health services, during the pandemic the program’s nurse practitioner providers played an indispensable role in addressing vaccine hesitancy among their client population.

“At UofL, we are committed to directly impacting the health and well-being of Louisville and beyond,” said UofL Interim Vice President for Community Engagement Douglas Craddock. “Our clinic for equine industry workers both cares for an often-marginalized community and provides essential hands-on, experiential learning to our students, empowering them to make a difference in the lives of the people they serve.”

“Health care provided by our highly qualified nurse practitioners is critical to helping address the shortage of primary care providers in Kentucky. The UofL School of Nursing is honored to play such an important role in providing care to those who otherwise may not have access. We are thrilled by this recognition,” said Interim Dean of the School of Nursing Mary DeLetter. 

Since 2007, APLU and the Engagement Scholarship Consortium, with support from the W.K. Kellogg Foundation, have partnered to honor the engagement scholarship and partnerships of four-year public universities. The award recognizes programs that demonstrate how colleges and universities have redesigned their learning, discovery and engagement missions to deepen their partnerships and achieve broader impacts in their communities. The national award is named for C. Peter Magrath, APLU president from 1992 to 2005.

 

UofL, Beargrass Thunder researching the impact of alley revitalization on mental wellbeing

Rebecca Turney (UofL student), Finley Barber (Duke student), Jody Dahmer (BGT), and Eileen Sember (UofL student) work to clean up the Oak Street alley.

Rebecca Turney (UofL student), Finley Barber (Duke student), Jody Dahmer (BGT), and Eileen Sember (UofL student) work to clean up the Oak Street alley.

The UofL Center for Healthy Air, Water and Soil has partnered with the local sustainability-focused group Beargrass Thunder and the UofL Health Equity Innovation Hub to clean up a local alley and assess the impact of the change on residents’ mental wellbeing.
 
Volunteers, including UofL students and staff, cleaned up alley space along Oak Street of trash and overgrown invasive plants and added flowers, art and low-level lighting to create pleasant green space. To document the impact of improving green spaces, UofL researchers conducted online surveys of area residents before the cleanup to assess their mental wellbeing and distress.
 
In a year, they will survey the residents again to find out how having more nature near their homes affects their mental wellbeing.
 
“This is another way to assess the varied impacts ‘nearby nature’ can have. If gains in physical and mental health can be made through projects like this, it can inform city leaders and policy decisions around urban spaces,” said Jody Dahmer of Beargrass Thunder, who is leading the revitalization project.

A heart for her people – UofL employee delivers flood relief in Eastern Kentucky

UofL students gain experience, drive change in Louisville’s affordable housing arena

University of Louisville social scientist Lauren Heberle

University of Louisville social scientist Lauren Heberle has contributed to Louisville's Metropolitan Housing Coalition's housing report since 2006. The current report will serve as a roadmap for the new mayoral administration to help advocate for housing changes in the city.

 

UofL is coordinating several efforts to aid eastern Kentucky residents affected by flooding

Community Engagement

University of Louisville

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