Robot Arm competition, Medical Sciences Building, 2013 Science Olympiad National Tournament, May 18.

A team of high school students from Solon High School and a team of middle school students from Solon Middle School in Solon, Ohio, took top honors in the 2013 Science Olympiad National Tournament held on the Wright State University campus, making history with back-to-back-to-back wins.

Other Ohio schools also fared well in the May 18 competition. Centerville High School captured fourth place in Division C, and Mentor Memorial Middle School took sixth in Division B.

One of the nation’s most prestigious science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) competitions, Science Olympiad brought together 120 winning middle school and high school teams advancing from state-level competitions this spring.

Boomilever competition, Oelman Hall, 2013 Science Olympiad National Tournament, May 18.

Rigorous hands-on and lab events like MagLev, Disease Detectives, Gravity Vehicle, Dynamic Planet, Rotor Egg Drop and Water Quality covered topics in physics, epidemiology, astronomy, chemistry, biology and engineering. Awards are given for the best overall team score and individual scores in each event.

Wright State is no stranger to Science Olympiad competition. In the past two years, the university has hosted annual invitationals, which drew students primarily from 10 states.

“We are proud to host this prestigious event,” said Wright State University President David R. Hopkins. “Science Olympiad is the pinnacle of science-related competitions for the sharpest middle and high school students.”

Rotor Egg Drop competition, Fritz and Dolores Russ Engineering Center, 2013 Science Olympiad National Tournament, May 18.

Science Olympiad is a national nonprofit organization whose mission is to improve the quality of science education, increase interest in science, attract more students to science careers, foster teamwork, emphasize the problem-solving aspects of science, and develop a technologically literate workforce. It has produced a generation of alumni who fill the hallways of top universities and corporations around the globe.

School-based teams prepare and practice throughout the year, then compete in regional and state tournaments. The top 120 teams in the country (nearly 2,000 students) advance to the national tournament.

“The students competing have some of our nation’s brightest young minds,” said Hopkins. “We hope many of these students will join our Raider family in the near future.”

Though the actual competition took place on Saturday, May 18, the university planned many workshops and activities for participants Thursday and Friday, May 16 and 17, offering them a chance to explore Wright State’s campus and academic programs.

Several of Saturday’s competition events were open to spectators. Competition was held from 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. in various locations across the Dayton campus.

The public was also invited to the Opening Ceremony at 6 p.m. on Friday and the Award Ceremony at 7:30 p.m. Saturday. Both ceremonies took place at the Wright State University Nutter Center.

For more information, visit: http://www.wright.edu/scienceolympiad/

Those involved included schools and colleges, Physical Plant and Grounds, Facilities Planning, the Sign Shop, Communications and Marketing, Parking Services, Residence Services, the Wright State Nutter Center, the Wright State Research Institute, Student Union, Event Services, Printing Services, Food Service and Catering, Purchasing, University Advancement and a host of local businesses.

Preparing each venue for accommodating the teams was a monumental task in itself. For example, the Expo at the Nutter Center alone featured 27 carefully crafted displays from the university’s schools and colleges.

“Planning the Science Olympiad National Tournament has truly been a university-wide effort,” said Wright State President David R. Hopkins.

Gregory L. Stover, D.O., associate professor of orthopaedic surgery, sports medicine and rehabilitation at the Wright State University Boonshoft School of Medicine, will speak about lower back pain, joint pain, numbness and tingling of hands or feet, tendonitis, stress fractures and carpal tunnel syndrome.

Stover is board certified in orthopaedic surgery and provides operative and non-operative orthopaedic care in the Wright State Physicians Orthopaedics and Sports Medicine offices in Sidney and Troy, in addition to the Wright State Physicians building.

For more information and to register for the May 21 event, contact Julie Knauff at jrknauff@mvh.org or (937) 208-2741.

Second-year medical student Topaz Sampson, the 2013-2014 president-elect of the Student National Medical Association (SNMA).

Topaz Sampson, a second-year medical student at the Wright State University Boonshoft School of Medicine, has been selected the 2013-2014 president-elect of the Student National Medical Association (SNMA), the oldest and largest student-run organization focused on the needs and concerns of medical students of color.

The nonprofit organization, which includes more than 6,000 medical students, premedical students, residents and physicians, is committed to supporting current and future underrepresented minority medical students, addressing the needs of underserved communities and increasing the number of clinically excellent, culturally competent and socially conscious physicians.

“The mission of the SNMA is one that resonates within me,” said Sampson, who served as president of her first-year medical school class. “As we enter into the 50th anniversary of the founding of the SNMA, the SNMA should reflect on this mission and ensure that we stay true to our purpose. My hope is that over the next 50 years, the SNMA continues to be firmly grounded in our principles and made more efficient through the utilization of technology.”

Sampson served as the webmaster and social chairperson of the Wright State chapter of the SNMA and as the SNMA Region V webmaster. In that role, she implemented creative ways of using technology to maintain the regional website and introduce the executive board to the membership. She also was selected as one of 20 SNMA Future Leadership Project Fellows.

In addition to her work with SNMA, Sampson volunteers monthly at Reach Out of Montgomery County, a free medical clinic in Dayton that serves the uninsured and underserved. She also served on the student committee for the selection of the dean of the medical school and a student committee for the selection of the medical school’s academic advisor. She has led the coordination of class events and community service. In addition, she coordinates weekly student tour guides for interviewing students.

“Topaz is a talented student leader at the Boonshoft School of Medicine,” said Gary LeRoy, M.D., associate dean for student affairs and admissions. “She is passionate about the SNMA and will work to make positive changes as she leads the SNMA into its next 50 years.”

Teri LaJeunesse, Greene County’s Victim Witness Division director, said the award has been given by the county prosecutor’s office during National Crime Victims’ Rights Week for more than 20 years.

Katie Deedrick, Wright State University Office of Student Support Services director

“Katie has done an excellent job for many years working with individuals who have been, or might be, victimized,” LaJeunesse said. “She has balanced the needs of the university with making sure the needs of the individuals have been met.”

Deedrick promotes personal safety among the student body and helps introduce community agencies to students who might utilize their services. When an assault or other incident takes place, she is also the person who receives the phone call in the middle of the night and drives to the hospital to offer the university’s help to the victim and his or her family.

Kathy Morris, associate vice president in the Division of Student Affairs, said, “Nobody else could do Katie’s job the way she does it.”

“She takes every incident very personally,” Morris said. “She is ‘all in’ in terms of helping that student. Especially in situations where there is not much family support, she’ll make sure the student gets the help they need.”

“Whether it’s noon or 4 a.m., Katie shows the university’s heart to students and their families,” said Dan Abrahamowicz, Division of Student Affairs vice president.

It took just two seasons for the Wright State University-Lake Campus baseball team to move to the top of the Ohio Regional College Conference mountain.

The Lakers won the ORCC tournament on Sunday by defeating Miami University-Hamilton 4–2 in the championship game at Beavers Field in Lancaster. The Lakers end their season with an impressive 19–9 campaign.

Read more at DailyStandard.com.

On May 1 Nathan Klingbeil became dean of Wright State University’s College of Engineering and Computer Science after 14 years at the school, but he’s done much more than teach.

Klingbeil, who has also served as a researcher and administrator, helped change the school’s curriculum in a way that re-invented engineering education for the school’s students.

Since 2003, he’s secured $5 million in grant funding from the National Science Foundation to grow and expand its engineering math program, as well as dozens of collaboration partners. The number of Wright State graduates in STEM fields has increased even as the numbers of students coming in to some of those programs went down.

He replaces Sundaram Narayanan, who in March was selected as Wright State’s newest provost.

Klingbeil sat down with me and shared his secret to engineering student success.

Read more at BizJournals.com.

The American Cancer Society’s Cancer Prevention Study-3 (CPS-3) will enroll a diverse population of up to a half-million people across the U.S. and Puerto Rico.

An opportunity to participate in a nationwide and historic study will soon be available to the Wright State community. Researchers believe the findings will allow them to better understand how lifestyle, environmental and genetic factors cause cancer.

The American Cancer Society’s Cancer Prevention Study-3 (CPS-3) will enroll a diverse population of up to a half-million people across the U.S. and Puerto Rico. Wright State students, faculty and staff will get their chance to enroll May 22 in the Millett Hall Atrium from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Volunteers from We Serve U and the campus community will staff the enrollment site.

Men and women between the ages of 30 and 65 who have never been diagnosed with cancer are the target demographic.

Visit http://www.miamivalleyCPS3.org to learn more.

“Many individuals diagnosed with cancer struggle to answer the question, ‘What caused my cancer?’ In many cases, we don’t know the answer,” said Alpa V. Patel, Ph.D., principal investigator of CPS-3. “CPS-3 will help us better understand what factors cause cancer, and once we know that, we can be better equipped to prevent cancer.”

Researchers will use the data from CPS-3 to build on evidence from a series of American Cancer Society studies that began in the 1950s that collectively have involved millions of volunteer participants.

The Hammond-Horn Study and previous Cancer Prevention Studies (CPS-1, and CPS-2) have played a major role in understanding cancer prevention and risk, and have contributed significantly to the scientific basis and development of public health guidelines and recommendations. Those studies confirmed the link between cigarette smoking and lung cancer, demonstrated the link between larger waist size and increased death rates from cancer and other causes, and showed the considerable impact of air pollution on heart and lung conditions.

The current study, CPS-2, began in 1982 and is still being conducted. But changes in lifestyle and in the understanding of cancer in the more than two decades since its launch make it important to begin a new study.

To enroll in CPS-3, individuals will be asked to read and sign an informed consent form, complete a brief survey, have their waist circumference measured, and give a small blood sample. The process should take 20–30 minutes to complete.

At home, enrollees will complete a comprehensive survey packet that asks for information on lifestyle, behavioral, and other factors related to their health.

Upon completion of this process, the American Cancer Society will continue to send periodic follow-up surveys to update participant information and annual newsletters with study updates and results. The initial and follow-up surveys completed at home will take less than an hour to complete and are expected to be sent every few years.

Researchers say the voluntary, long-term commitment by participants is what will produce benefits for decades to come.

“Taking an hour or so every few years to fill out a survey—and potentially save someone from being diagnosed with cancer in the future—is a commitment that thousands of volunteer participants have already made,” said Dr. Patel. “We’re looking for more like-minded individuals at Wright State to join this effort that we know will save lives and improve the outlook for future generations.”

Aaron Blake's interest in batteries was sparked after helping his advisor research topics related to lithium-ion electrodes. He picked up and helped continue research into the development of a long-lasting lithium-sulfur battery as part of a senior design project.

Game Boys were fun. The handheld devices offered baseball, Tetris, Super Mario and other Nintendo video games. But the batteries died quickly, often draining in a single day. That always bugged Aaron Blake when he was a kid—and it planted a seed in his mind.

Today, Blake is a student at Wright State University conducting graduate-level research on batteries in hopes of producing a super battery that can provide nearly inexhaustible power to electric cars, laptop computers, cellphones and other equipment that require energy storage devices.

“There’s got to be a solution,” said Blake. “I want to do something that impacts the future in a positive way.”

Blake is pursuing a master’s degree in renewable and clean energy and a Ph.D. in materials and nanotechnology.

Blake spends much of his time in Room 217 of the Russ Engineering Center. The tiny lab sports an argon-filled glove box where batteries are built, a station where they are tested and several presses to punch out electrodes in the shape of tiny coins.

Blake landed at Wright State’s College of Engineering and Computer Science in a roundabout way.

Math was not kind to Blake in grade school. He admits he wasn’t very good at it. But at Springboro High School, Blake fell in love with mathematics. Teachers saw his potential and encouraged him. He began to enjoy friendly math competitions with his classmates. During his junior year of advanced algebra, he caught the fever for good.

“Ever since then, I loved sitting down and working out math problems,” he said.

However, Blake wasn’t quite sure how to apply his love for math with a career. He enrolled at the University of Dayton as a pre-dental major, but it wasn’t a good fit for him. So he transferred to Wright State into the engineering program, which he loved because he was exposed to mechanical, electrical, materials and every other discipline of engineering.

“I was scared at first because I was trying to jump in and work at the second-year level,” he said. “But the professors here are fantastic, and the advising here is phenomenal. That made me very comfortable and helped me progress.”

In his senior year, Blake’s interest in batteries resurfaced when he learned that his current academic advisor was conducting research on electro-chemical energy storage devices. After helping his advisor research topics related to lithium-ion electrodes, he picked up and helped continue research into the development of a long-lasting lithium-sulfur battery as part of a senior design project.

Today—while pursuing a master’s degree in renewable and clean energy and a Ph.D. in materials and nanotechnology—he’s working on developing exactly such a battery.

“It’s a battery that offers the highest theoretical energy density and specific capacity of any two solid elements,” Blake said. “It’s promising because sulfur is a very abundant material, so it’s really cheap.”

Currently, lithium-ion batteries are commonly used in electric cars. However, automakers have said that the weight and high cost of the batteries is preventing the spread of electric cars beyond a small number of urban commuters.

“So developing a battery based on the lithium-sulfur couple and making it a realistic technology would be tremendous,” Blake said.

He is currently tackling the chemical challenges of such a battery.

Once a lithium-sulfur battery is discharging, the sulfur begins to form long polysulfide chains, which become soluble, begin to dissolve and weaken the battery. So Blake is working on combining the sulfur with graphene—pure carbon in a one-atom thick sheet—to try to keep the sulfur from dissolving.

“The toughest part is that I’m working with materials at the nanoscale—something you can’t see—so you have to imagine it,” he said. “You have to really understand the area which you’re researching, apply what you’ve learned in these classes, what you’ve read in other research, and try to figure out what’s going on. I enjoy doing that. It’s very fulfilling.”

Blake’s research is sponsored by a National Science Foundation grant, which was also used to create a new class for students called Experimental Nanomaterials and Nanoscience.

“The whole point of this is to prepare undergraduate and graduate students for the emerging field of nanotechnology,” he said. “The field is growing and will become a large sector of business.”

When he is not studying or conducting research, Blake enjoys playing the guitar and the piano and occasionally picking up a book. He just re-read Frankenstein, the Mary Shelley novel about a creature produced by an unorthodox scientific experiment.

But most of Blake’s time is spent in the classroom and the lab, pursuing his battery-power dreams.

“I hope to make this a realistic battery,” he said. “If we can do that, we can make electric vehicles an affordable reality.”

Patrik Pollare, from Smart Eye AB in Sweden, takes the controls of a flight simulator in the Joshi Research Center on campus. Observing (from left) are Jason Russi, Air Force Institute of Technology; James Sullivan, Smart Eye AB; and Jeffrey Cowgill, information systems analyst in Psychology at Wright State.

More than 200 researchers from around the globe converged on Wright State University for the 17th International Symposium on Aviation Psychology May 6-9.

Thomas Wischgoll, Ph.D, associate professor of Computer Science and Engineering at Wright State, helps Jennifer Sutton, Brescia University College in Ontario, Canada, experience the R.C. Appenzeller Visualization Laboratory.

“The symposium is a collaboration between the Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL), Wright State University, other research institutions, industry, government, military and civilian, trying to improve aviation safety and advance the field,” said Pamela Tsang, Ph.D., professor of psychology at Wright State and one of the event organizers.

The Dayton region is an ideal location for this biannual event, hosted by Wright State University in collaboration with the Air Force Research Laboratory Human Effectiveness Directorate.

Three of the local members of the organizing committee include (from left) Michael Vidulich, Air Force Research Laboratory; Pamela Tsang, Ph.D. and John Flach, Ph.D., both from Wright State.

“The history of aviation psychology in the Dayton region stretches back to the ground breaking work of Paul Fitts on pilot errors during World War II,” explained John Flach, Ph.D., an event organizer and presenter. This tradition has continued and been reinforced by the establishment of the 711 Human Performance Wing and the extensive research of the Human Effectiveness Directorate of the AFRL.

Flach, a psychology professor at Wright State, added that the Navy has moved much of its Human Effectiveness research to Dayton as a result of the Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC). “Thus, the Dayton Region has one of the largest critical masses in the world of people studying ways to improve human and organizational effectiveness in aviation and other domains,” he noted.

Wright State, recognized for its commitment to international relations, is a member of the acclaimed National Council for International Visitors.

Physicians, nurses and health ministry officials from Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates will visit Wright State and the Dayton area to examine efforts to prevent disease and promote community wellness.

The five-member delegation will be in the area May 11 to 15 as part of the State Department’s International Visitor Leadership Program through the Wright State’s Dayton Council of International Visitors. Dayton is one of four U.S. cities chosen for the visit.

The delegation will exchange ideas with government agencies health organizations. The group will also visit a health center as well as schools and community groups active in promoting community wellness.

“Wright State is excited to be part of this important public wellness program,” said Michelle Streeter-Ferrari, director of Wright State’s University Center for International Education and program administrator for the Dayton Council on World Affairs. “The delegation’s goal is to examine efforts that protect citizens from preventable, serious health threats by promoting wellness, disease prevention and preventive health care services.”

The delegation’s agenda includes a meeting with the Wright State University Tobacco Task Force and the Center for Healthy Communities, a community-academic partnership that includes Wright State’s Boonshoft School of Medicine .

The group will also meet with other health officials, Public Health Dayton and Montgomery County, Cassano Health Center and the Boonshoft Museum of Discovery

The first place team in the high school division was from Versailles High School. (L-R) Amy Carman, government/economics teacher, students Brandon Groff and Megan Hemmelgarn, Wright State Finance Lecturer Matthew Ingram, Ph.D., and Wright State Director of the Center for Economic Education and Financial Literacy at the Raj Soin College of Business D. R. Fannin.

How would you like a 14.3% growth in your retirement fund? Would you be willing to settle for 8.75%? That’s exactly what some sharp students from Raider Country accomplished in the Ohio Stock Market Challenge (OSMC) this spring.

Nearly 200 teams from across Ohio competed in the challenge. Teams of two to five students were given $100,000 in imaginary dollars to invest over a 10-week period.

The team from Versailles finished first in the high school division with $114,327 in their portfolio. A team of students from Fort Loramie Elementary School grew their portfolio to $108,754 and won the middle school division. Cash prizes of $100, $75 and $50 were awarded to the top three teams in each division.

The top three high school and middle school teams from the 15-county region served by the Center for Economic Education and Financial Literacy at the Raj Soin College of Business visited Wright State to learn more about the university and the stock market May 10.

Students from the top three teams in both the high school and middle school divisions visited Wright State to cap their Ohio Stock Market Challenge experience.

“It is a good way to introduce middle and high school students to the stock market and to teach them how to grow wealth,” said D.R. Fannin, director of the center. “It is also a good way to give them a taste of the college experience.”

Twenty-one students, parents and teachers took a tour of campus, met for lunch at the college and joined current Wright State finance students and faculty in the Trading Room for a question and answer session about their experiences.

Brandon Groff and Megan Hemmelgarn of Versailles High School won their division because of a pharmaceutical stock that surged in value on the last day of the competition.

“It was very interesting being exposed to the whole financial market,” said Groff, a senior. “We learned how to research investments, make good investments and the pros and cons of the stock market—how you can lose and gain big.”

“They gained a much better understanding for what the stock market is, what it represents and how it could affect their personal finances in the future, whether it be in investing, retirement funds or college savings,” said Amy Carman, government/economics teacher at Versailles High School.

Wright State’s finance students participate in a similar exercise as the challenge each semester in the Real Money class—an undergraduate course where students invest funds from the university endowment using investing principles they’ve learned in the classroom.

“I was really impressed because they didn’t just throw a dart at the wall when they made their picks,” said Jonathon Mahilo, a recent grad who earned his degree in finance. “A lot of them stuck with the products they knew, that they were familiar with. And that’s a sound strategy. Invest in what you know.”

Supporting the challenge and other events is one of many ways the Center for Economic Education and Financial Literacy serves as a catalyst for teaching the basics of economics and finance throughout the region.

With a litany of continuing education opportunities for area teachers throughout the year and in-person curriculum demonstrations in schools across the greater Dayton area, the center is fulfilling its mission to educate teachers on how to teach financial literacy and economics to kids in grades PreK–12.

“We’ve been offering professional development to teachers for years,” said Fannin.

Fannin said courses have been offered online since 1997. In 2006, Ohio passed legislation emphasizing personal finance. Since then it’s also become a staple of instruction.

“We emphasize learning about credit a lot now, but more than anything we’re trying to pass along engaging ideas and resources that teachers can take back to the classroom and use today,” said Fannin.

Award Recipients

High School Division

Versailles High School

$114,327 Portfolio Value

Advisor: Amy Carman

Students: Brandon Groff, Megan Hemmelgarn

Dayton Regional STEM School

$114,210 Portfolio Value

Advisor: Arch Grieve

Students: Sharde Scott-Manning, Ryan Truesdell, Killian Macnish, Tim Brown

Greenon High School

$110,003 Portfolio Value

Advisor: Sherrie Smith

Students: Samantha Barnette, Brock Gnau, Dustin McReynolds, Madelyne Watkins, Cody Tankersley

Middle School Division

Fort Loramie Elementary School

$108,754 Portfolio Value

Advisor: Bran Turner

Students: Dana Rose, Adam Siegel, Austin Bollheimer

Fort Loramie Elementary School

$108,472 Portfolio Value

Advisor: Brad Turner

Students: Trevor Middendorf, Hannah Raterman, Danielle, Eilerman

Five Points Elementary School

$108,426 Portfolio Value

Advisor: Courtney Hurley

Students: Hope Deckman, Sydeny Khosla, Raegan Truscott

Junior Tylar O’Neil is one of many current students working in the Call Center and scheduled to serve as an Orientation leader.

Is Orientation a one-day thing? Will we get our schedules there? Should my parents come?

These are the types of questions Wright State University students are handling for two hours a day, three days a week, as they call students who have been accepted to the university but have not yet signed up for Orientation.

They’re working the phones in the new Wright State Enrollment Call Center. They’re trying to make a personal connection with admitted high school students now, so they will choose Wright State.

“We communicate with our incoming freshmen all summer with a comprehensive plan to ensure that we will have them with us in the fall. It’s so very important that we stay ‘top of mind’ with these students and their families, so they feel a part of the Raider family,” said Dr. Jacqueline McMillan, vice president for enrollment management.

Current students are working the phones in the new Wright State Call Center. They’re trying to make a personal connection with admitted high school students now, so they will choose Wright State.

Orientation is a daylong event in the summer and dates range from May to August. New students come to learn more about their academic college, meet their dean, academic advisor, faculty and alumni. They also get their schedule, Wright1 Card, and meet other freshmen.

“It’s better if you make a personal call and it comes from a current student, rather than an automated call,” said Josh Hilgefort, a graduate assistant getting his master’s in student affairs who is managing the Call Center.

So far, about 2,000 prospective students have been called. The plan is to call another 2,000 over the next few weeks. Junior Tylar O’Neil is one of many current students working in the Call Center and scheduled to serve as an Orientation leader.

“They have a lot of questions,” said O’Neil. “I think it means more when they hear from us because it shows we genuinely want you at this school, we want to help you get here and we want to be the ones who greet you.”

Students don’t always reach a prospective student on the first try. They end up speaking with parents and voicemails frequently, but they believe persistence and friendliness will pay off.

“We don’t want to bug them too much, but we do want to keep calling them to remind them that Orientation is mandatory,” said Hilgefort.

O’Neil says she’s made a couple hundred calls and looks forward to the conversations she participates in, but one things is always consistent.

“The last thing I say is always the same,” said O’Neil. “‘We look forward to seeing you on campus this summer.’”

The remodeling of the main entrance to the Student Union will make Wright State more appealing to new students and will serve as a “one-stop shop” for current students, according to Facilities Planner Mark Horsley.

The completed product will include RaiderConnect and Admissions departments and will hopefully open in July, Horsley said.

“I think the university is trying to change the way that services are delivered to the students,” said Facilities Planning and Management staff member Wende Morgan-Elliot.

Read more at TheGuardianOnline.com.

Wright State University-Lake Campus this fall will begin offering courses toward associate’s and bachelor’s degrees in food science.

Professor Greg Homan led a focus group Tuesday at the campus to gather input from area agribusiness leaders on what the new curriculum should include and the skills employees should obtain.

Read more at DailyStandard.com.

“Skin cancer is the most common cancer in the United States,” said Julian Trevino, M.D., professor and chair of the Department of Dermatology in the Wright State University Boonshoft School of Medicine. “If detected early, skin cancer is very treatable.”

To schedule an appointment at the Wright State University Wright State Physicians building or Samaritan Sleep Center, call CareFinders at (866) 608-3463. To schedule an appointment at Kettering Sports Medicine Center, call (937) 558-3988.

One in five Americans will be diagnosed with a skin cancer during their lifetime, according to the American Academy of Dermatology. “Skin cancer affects people of all ages and races. Everyone should learn how to recognize the warning signs,” Trevino said. “Dermatologists from the Dayton area have joined forces to offer this free screening to help educate our community about this potentially life-threatening disease and to save lives through early detection.”

The free screenings also will include optional DermaScan^TM viewing, which uses ultraviolet light to reveal sun damage invisible to the naked eye.

According to the American Cancer Society, more than 3.5 million skin cancers are diagnosed annually in the United States. More than 2 million Americans are diagnosed with basal and squamous cell cancers each year. Melanoma, the most serious type of skin cancer, will account for more than 75,000 cases of skin cancer in 2013. It is almost always curable when it is found in its early stages. Warning signs of melanoma include changes in size, shape or color of a mole or other skin lesion, or the appearance of a new growth on the skin.

The American Academy of Dermatology encourages people to protect their skin by applying a broad-spectrum sunscreen with a sun protection factor of 30 or greater, seeking shade and wearing protective clothing.

The free skin cancer screenings are offered annually in May as part of Melanoma/Skin Cancer Detection and Prevention Month^® to promote early detection and teach prevention of skin cancer. The free screenings are sponsored by the Wright State University Boonshoft School of Medicine Department of Dermatology and Wright State Physicians Dermatology, along with the American Academy of Dermatology, American Cancer Society, Atrium Medical Center, Eucerin, Good Samaritan Hospital, Good Samaritan North Health Center, Kettering Health Network, Miami Valley Hospital and Premier Community Health.

Skin cancer screening dates and locations

Monday, May 6

Wright State University*

Wright State Physicians

725 University Blvd.

Dayton, OH 45435

1-4:30 p.m.

Wednesday, May 8

Samaritan Sleep Center*

80 East Woodbury Drive

Dayton, OH 45415

9-11:30 a.m.

Wright State University*

Wright State Physicians

725 University Blvd.

Dayton, OH 45435

1-4:30 p.m.

Friday, May 10

Kettering Sports Medicine Center**

4403 Far Hills Ave.

Kettering, OH 45429

9-11:30 a.m.

1-4:30 p.m.

*For appointment, call (866) 608-3463

**For appointment, call (937) 558-3988

The Wright State School of Professional Psychology currently produces more clinical psychologists than all of Ohio’s other public universities combined, including The Ohio State University and the University of Cincinnati.

Wright State’s School of Professional Psychology is gearing up for the largest enrollment in its history. And the school is going to be taking on a more international flavor.

SOPP normally enrolls about 25 new students each year and currently has 106. This fall, 35 new students are expected to enroll, pushing the school total to 141.

“We need to grow,” said Larry James, Ph.D., dean of SOPP. “The mental health need is there. It’s just that simple. But we’re going to grow in a very controlled, calculated, purposeful-type way.”

SOPP currently produces more clinical psychologists than all of Ohio’s other public universities combined, including The Ohio State University and the University of Cincinnati.

The traditional Ph.D. in psychology program takes in four to eight students a year. Because of the dissertation requirement, those students often graduate at different times, so the incoming class doesn’t graduate together. At Wright State, which offers a Psy.D. doctoral degree, the classes are larger and  the students usually graduate together.

Graduates go into private practice or get jobs in hospitals, university counseling centers, Veterans Administration facilities, military installations, prisons and in other places.

“We have a huge mental-health imprint in the state,” James said.

He said demand for clinical psychologists has increased significantly over the past five years as a struggling economy produced higher levels of spouse abuse, alcoholism, depression, suicides and post-traumatic stress disorder.

Jobs for psychologists are expected to grow by about 12 percent through 2018, according to the Occupational Outlook Handbook. Increased demand for psychological services in hospitals, schools, social service agencies, mental health centers, substance abuse treatment clinics and private companies is expected to drive the need.

SOPP once received several hundred student applications to fill 25 slots. Because of increased competition by schools in Ohio, Illinois, Kentucky, West Virginia, Virginia and Washington, D.C., SOPP now gets fewer than 200 applications annually. James said the school is stepping up its recruiting.

“If we don’t aggressively go after those 200 or so applicants, they’ll be recruited by less competitive programs,” said James.

He said the standards for admission will not change.

“We turn people away every year,” said James. “We spend considerable time deciding on who we believe are the best applicants.”

He said SOPP plans to bolster its staff of about 20 full-time professors with adjunct instructors to help carry the extra load.

“Our first priority is to train you as a generalist, a good practicing psychologist,” James said. “You can work with the geriatric population, you can work with kids, adults, you can work with people who have substance-abuse problems. We want to train you broad enough so you’ll be prepared to go down whatever road you want to go.”

In addition to the new enrollments from U.S. students, SOPP will also have an influx of students from Nigeria and India beginning in January.

“Not only are we expanding our already existing doctoral program, we’re going international,” James said.

SOPP will provide a 12-month curriculum that will clinically train doctoral students from Benue State University in Nigeria. The school will also offer a program in which students at St. Xavier College in Mumbai, India, will be able to complete their master’s degrees at SOPP and then matriculate into the SOPP doctoral program.

The two international programs are expected to add seven to 15 new students to the SOPP classes.

(L-R) Raj Soin College of Business Dean Joanne Li, D. R. Fannin, director of the Center for Economic Education and Financial Literacy and Nancy Slezak, community relations manager for GE Capital Retail Bank.

GE Capital Retail Bank has awarded $16,500 to 41 teachers for scholarships to enhance the financial literacy of students in a 15-county area. The donation was presented by a GE Capital Retail Bank representative during a ceremony Tuesday, April 16, at the Raj Soin College of Business.

The majority of the recipients are teachers from low- to moderate-income school districts who are completing a graduate-level economics course through the Wright State University Raj Soin College of Business Center for Economic Education and Financial Literacy. The center offers a comprehensive financial literacy program developed for K–12 teachers and students to meet learning outcomes established by the Ohio Department of Education.

“GE Capital Retail Bank is excited about the opportunity to work together with Wright State University. The scholarships will empower teachers to educate students about important money management skills that will last a lifetime,” said Nancy Slezak, community relations manager for GE Capital Retail Bank. “The lessons taught will help equip students with the knowledge they need to stay in control of their finances and succeed in life after high school. We are proud to be part of this initiative.”

Joanne Li, Ph.D., CFA, dean of the Raj Soin College of Business, said, “We are truly appreciative of the donation from GE Capital Retail Bank. This is an excellent example of our committed stakeholders in the business community to help finance and develop programs that benefit students and residents of the entire region.”

Teachers completing the course will come away with teaching resources for their students and understanding of the history of credit, credit reports and credit scores, credit scams and fraud, and the importance of managing credit wisely.

“The financial support from GE Capital Retail Bank has been crucial in helping area teachers hone their financial literacy teaching capacity, especially as schools districts and individual teachers have faced increasing budget challenges,” according to D. R. Fannin, director of the Center for Economic Education and Financial Literacy.

To learn more about GE Capital: https://www.gogecapital.com/en/consumer-credit-financing/index.html

To learn about the Center for Economic Education and Financial Literacy: www.wright.edu/cee.

To learn about Wright State University’s Raj Soin College of Business: www.wright.edu/business/

New scholarship opportunities are available for Wright State University’s RN-to-BSN program, which enables nurses to advance their careers by obtaining their bachelor’s degrees with greater ease and speed.

Scholarships of up to $4,000 per student will be offered.

The scholarships are competitive and hinge on the students meeting certain academic requirements. In addition, students enrolled in the SHARE program at Sinclair Community College will be eligible.

Read more at DaytonDailyNews.com

Students are raising money to pay for their classmate’s heart transplant with a 5K called “Find the Beat Again” at Wright State University’s Lake Campus at 8 a.m. Saturday.

Friends of WSU student Rachel Doseck planned the event, Doseck said, to feel like they had some way to help her after an extended illness caused by her body rejecting her heart transplant. She received another heart on Jan.10.

Doseck told The Evening Leader what it’s like to have your heart stop in the hospital.

When your heart stops, she explains, you don’t automatically go unconscious. Actually you’re awake for a minute; the last thing you see as your eyes close are doctors and nurses running into your room with “crash carts,” which are what they call the unit transporting the electrical jump-starting paddles that they use to revive the heart.

Read more at theeveningleader.com