I believe that in order for someone to reach their full potential, they need to have a strong foundation of mental, physical, and emotional wellness. This is true of our students who are pursuing their academic and career goals, but it is also true for our Omaha community and our society at large.
In this month’s update to our campus and Nebraska community I want to put the spotlight on some of the many ways we are promoting wellness, not only on our campus with student support, but throughout the state, nation, and the world through cutting-edge research and creativity.
Joanne Li, Ph.D., CFA UNO Chancellor
Out of Office with Chancellor Li:
Season 1 Episode 2
When students have a healthy mind, body, and spirit, there’s no limit to what they can achieve at UNO. Our incredible Campus Recreation team of full-time staff and student employees play a critical role in keeping our Mavericks moving. For this month’s Out of Office episode, I visited our rock-climbing wall to put a spotlight on one of the many campus recreation options that our students, faculty, and staff have at their disposal to stay well at UNO.
Mental wellness is a lifelong journey. There are highs and there are lows, but it’s a journey our students never have to walk alone. I am incredibly proud of our team of mental health professionals in Counseling and Psychological Services (CAPS), who helped a student on his own journey. This story is a touching reminder that it’s okay to not be okay, and there is always help and support ready when you need it.
There’s a saying that a picture is worth a thousand words. In my opinion, a portrait is worth even more. Mark Gilbert is an artist and a medical humanities professor at UNO. His “Saving Faces” project, which focuses on painting portraits of patients undergoing facial reconstructive surgeries, helped individuals heal and adjust and adjust to their deformities. It underscores the idea that the arts and humanities possess the power to heal.
What’s the secret to student success at UNO? Staff and faculty who are obsessed with ensuring they graduate on time with minimal debt and into careers that they love. Sammi Kaiser, Ph.D., director of UNO’s Academic & Career Development Center and senior director of academic advising, plays an integral role in this campus-wide endeavor. She was recently recognized with the University of Nebraska System KUDOS award. Please join me in celebrating Sammi on this award and the many academic advisors who make UNO an exceptional place to learn.
It’s not science fiction: a world where we could predict when viruses spread, where Alzheimer’s could be detected years in advance, and where cancer patients are given treatments based on their genetic makeup is within reach thanks to UNO.
Ann Fruhling, Ph.D., a UNO professor of interdisciplinary informatics, is one of the leaders of the new University of Nebraska Center for Biomedical Informatics Research and Innovation (CBIRI). The group’s goal is to combine various focus areas from across the University of Nebraska System to establish our state as a national leader in biomedical informatics.
One of our points of pride is the fact that UNO has the only undergraduate to professional pipeline in the state, and one of the very few in the nation, when it comes to biomedical informatics, offering degrees across all academic levels: bachelor’s, master’s, and doctoral programs.
“We truly have something that very few people have in this educational pipeline and mentorships with practicing medical professionals – now with the Center the door opens even wider,” Fruhling said. “There is really no limit to the impact our university can have on the health, safety, and wellbeing of our world with this kind of research and for our faculty and our students to have that opportunity is extremely exciting.”
Exciting, indeed. This project is proof that incredible things happen when innovation meets imagination.
For many of our students, the COVID-19 pandemic had disrupted important milestones in their lives including the end of their time in high school and the first steps of their collegiate journey. Cathy Pettid, Ph.D., Dean of Students at UNO, shared an update on how the pandemic heightened mental health issues among students to the University of Nebraska Board of Regents in October.
Long waits and high costs can keep people from pursuing the mental healthcare they need. Abby Bjornsen-Ramig, a psychologist and associate professor of counseling at UNO, shared her thoughts with KMTV on the impact of these barriers and what resources are available to overcome them.
The Pulse, a podcast produced by WHYY, an NPR affiliate based in Philadelphia spoke with Beth Chalecki, Ph.D., on geoengineering tradeoffs between climate solutions and drawbacks. Chalecki is an assistant professor of political science at UNO and a research fellow in the Environmental Change and Security Program at the Woodrow Wilson Center in Washington D.C.
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