Liberty, Justice and Good Health for All

The 2nd annual conference of the Health Disparities Institute brought inspirational words to an audience of health educators, students and health care professionals.
The keynote address was delivered by Margaret Heckler, currently the US Ambassador to the Republic of Ireland.
At one point in her career she served as US Secretary of Health and Human Services and directed the first national study into the differences in health status between persons of color and the majority population.

She spoke about the mission to bridge the gap in health outcomes as one of the components of the modern day civil rights movement in America. The conference was held over the course of two days at the St. John Westin Resort. It was sponsored by the Caribbean Exploratory NCMHD Research Center (CERC), National Center on Minority and Health Disparities, led by former UVI Nursing Division Director, Dr. Gloria Callwood.

Free Seasonal Flu Vaccine

Dr. Angela McGhee from Campus Advisory and Tutorial Services gets the point about safeguarding her health from Nurse Ronda Herbert.

Students, staff and faculty on the St. Thomas campus lined up to take advantage of a free flu shot offer on Tuesday. Herbert of Health Services said those who come Oct 13 – 14 can be vaccinated against the seasonal flu virus. An announcement will be made as to when shots against the H1N1 flu virus will be available. Those who want to take precautions against catching the flu can call 340-693-1124 to make an appointment.

Flu vaccine will be available on the St. Croix campus in the near future. Call Health Services, St. Croix at 340-692-4214 for details.

Activist Leads Frank Discussion About Living With AIDS

Emmy Award-winning AIDS activist Rae Lewis-Thornton was the featured speaker during a day-long conference on HIV/AIDS held on Oct. 2, on UVI’s St. Thomas campus. Lewis-Thornton, who has been living with HIV for 26 years, spoke frankly about her experiences and transmission of the disease. She told the group of UVI and high school students that while she wants to make a difference, she cannot save their lives and the decision to protect themselves is ultimately up to them. “You have got to take this information and use it,” she said, following her presentation.

Lewis-Thornton was one of the first African American women to share her story with a major publication when she was featured on the cover of Essence magazine in 1994.

The conference was sponsored by the Office of the Associate Campus Executive Administrator for Student Affairs.

UVI Students Join ‘Live Chat’ with Ocean Researchers in Sea of Japan

Photo illustration by UVI Public Relations

UVI researcher Dr. Nasseer Idrisi conducted his first “live chat” from the decks of a research ship in the Sea of Japan with a room full of students and other interested persons on the University’s St. Thomas campus on Saturday, Sept. 19. Dr. Idrisi first gave the UVI audience a tour of the ship and its laboratories. He and other scientists then fielded a variety of questions from students gathered in room 101 of the Teacher Education Building.

The students wanted to know about the subject of the research mission, the techniques used to obtain samples from the seabed, and if they had pulled up any precious gems. The project is investigating an extinct super volcano in an area known as the Shatsky Rise. Scientists use techniques similar to those employed in drilling oil wells at sea. And, finally, they have found no gems just yet.

Dr. Idrisi, the expedition’s “educator at sea,” is focusing on serving as the ship’s communicator. As such, he is working directly with UVI Science 100 students. Subsequent live chats are scheduled for noon on Sunday, Sept. 27, Saturday, Oct. 10, and Sunday, Oct. 25. Virgin Islands educators who want to involve their students in real-time deep ocean geological research, as well as members of the public, are encouraged to attend the videoconference session with Dr. Nasseer Idrisi. All will take place in Room 101 of the Teacher Education Building on UVI’s St. Thomas campus.

More on the Shatsky Rise voyage, including background, photos of the ship and the scientists and sailing schedules, is available from the Ocean Leadership web site: www.oceanleadership.org.

A news release is also available from the UVI web site – http://www.uvi.edu/ – and from this direct link.

School Groups Invited to Organize Videoconference Sessions

School groups and others interested in organizing their own videoconference sessions with Dr. Idrisi will need to obtain special IOCOM software in order to communicate. An informational fact sheet and technical specifications can be obtained by visiting these links Shatsky Rise_Fact_Sheet - Shatsky Rise Technology

Hundreds Attend UVI Student Research Symposium

UVI student researchers Sean Francis, center, and Stella Jarvis explain their joint research project which looked into Finding Weird Numbers to Michael Johnson, one of two graduate students visiting UVI from the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill. Johnson and fellow UNC student Daniel Dominquez address the UVI class of Dr. Alice Stanford while visiting UVI.

A standing room only crowd turned out for UVI’s 11th annual Fall Student Research Symposium on Sunday, Sept. 20. Some 60 UVI student researchers presented the results of the past summer’s research – conducted on-island and at locations throughout the U.S. – in poster form and took the opportunity to explain their efforts to visitors.

Sponsored by UVI’s Division of Science and Mathematics and the Emerging Caribbean Scientists (ECS) program, the symposium’s goal was to showcase the outstanding quality and diversity of undergraduate and graduate student research that UVI students have conducted over the summer and during the past year.

UVI student researchers Katy Sanon explains her research titled ISSR-Protocol Established for Local Plant Killer to UVI President Dr. David Hall.

Nine from UVI Attend National Black Nurses Association Institute and Conference

Nine University of the Virgin Islands students and alumni attended the National Black Nurses Association (NBNA) Institute and Conference in Toronto, Canada, from Aug. 2 through 6. Each has been involved with data collection for studies being conducted on health disparities by the Division of Nursing Education’s Caribbean Exploratory NCMHD Research Center (CERC). Their attendance was sponsored by the CERC. The conference gave participants the opportunity to network with nurse researchers, nurse theorists and nursing students. They were able to learn what nurses from across the nation and Canada are focusing on while meeting the health care challenges of the people they serve. The participants also attended workshops where CERC faculty and mentors presented papers on studies to which they contributed.

UVI's NBNA participants, shown, from left, are Melanie Ruiz, Natasha Caines, Dionne Williams, RN (alumna), Casandra Scotland-Brooks, RN (alumna), Assistant Professor Suzette Lettsome, MSN, RN, Shenelle Pogson, Nishel Lawrence, Lois Browne and Shenell Joshua.

Michael Jackson Tribute Show to Benefit UVI's Reichhold Center

A few lucky UVI staffers took the opportunity to meet Marlon Jackson, at left, and Tito Jackson, at right, following a news conference to promote the "MJ51" Michael Jackson tribute concert at which Tito will perform at 8 p.m. on Saturday, Aug. 29, at UVI's Sports and Fitness Center on the St. Thomas campus. The concert, with proceeds going to benefit UVI's Reichhold Center for the Arts, will celebrate the life and music of the late Michael Jackson. Staffers joining the Jacksons are, from left, Arlene Auguste, Nadine Questel-Williams, Jacqueline Faulkner and Tiffany Challenger. Click here to read a news release on the concert.

Volunteers Kickoff UVI's 2009 Alumni Phonathon

The University of the Virgin Islands opened its four-day, 2009 UVI Alumni Phonathon on Monday, Aug. 24. Each evening, through Aug. 27, volunteer students, alumni, faculty and staff will be taking to the phones to seek financial support from the more than 6,000 UVI alumni in the territory and abroad. This year's goal is to raise $25,000 in support of the University and its sutdents. Click here for more on the 2009 Phonathon.

New UVI President Dr. David Hall Visits With Students as Start of Fall Semester Nears

Dr. David Hall, UVI's fifth president, has been busy meeting with members of the UVI community as the start of the fall semester nears. Dr. Hall greets Dante Morton (top) following a breakfast with new students on Aug. 11, on the St. Thomas campus. Carice Glasgow (above), Miss UVI 2009-2010, greets Dr. Hall during the official Hall family introduction to the St. Croix campus on Monday, Aug. 10.

Science Students Show Results of Summer Research Labors

\UVI science students made the front page of the Virgin Islands Daily News and earned air time on TV-2’s local news following the UVI Division of Mathematics and Science’s Seventh Annual Summer Research Symposium held Friday, July 31, on the St. Thomas campus. Nineteen young scientists – representing both the St. Thomas and St. Croix campuses – took the opportunity to make poster presentations detailing the results of their summer research endeavors.

Research topics ranged from number theory to bacterial flora, and from St. Croix sheep populations the Tabu Search Algorithm. Another six students were recognized for completing the Summer Bridge2 Calculus program for college-bound students. The symposium is sponsored by the Emerging Caribbean Scientists program of the Division of Science and Mathematics. These programs are funded by University of the Virgin Islands, the National Science Foundation, the National Institutes of Health, and the Jones, Holloway & Bryan Foundation.

Related links: Research Symposium Abstract; Virgin Islands Daily News article; UVI News Release.