(COLUMBIA, Tenn. - May 29, 2018) - - - Columbia State Community College recently received a $33,000 student engagement, retention and success grant from the Tennessee Board of Regents for the Internationalization of Pre-Health Sciences Courses and Medical History Study Abroad program.

"The grant will help Columbia State continue to engage students in the high impact practices of study abroad and undergraduate research," said Wes Dulaney, Columbia State director of international education and assistant professor of biology.

The first phase of the grant project is to internationalize three courses for the Fall 2018 semester - Anatomy and Physiology I, Anatomy and Physiology II and Microbiology. Course internationalization involves the intentional inclusion topics that enhance global and cultural awareness. The rationale for targeting these courses for internationalization is that they form the foundational education for many major fields including nursing, radiologic technology and respiratory care, but rarely is time devoted to understanding course content in the international context of global health issues.

The second phase of the grant project is to recruit students enrolled in a fall 2018 internationalized course to take an introduction to biology research course in spring 2019 that will continue with international themes. Students will be taking individual genetic testing to learn about their ancestry. This procedure will provide context to analyze modern techniques in genetic testing, world populations and genetic differences, and historical patterns of human migration through the world.

In the second half of the course, students will take part in a study abroad experience during spring break in London, United Kingdom, where students can experience a wealth of medical history by visiting sites such as the Barts Pathology Museum, Royal College of Nursing Library & Heritage Centre, Royal College of Physicians Museum and the Royal Society of Medicine.

"A majority of the grant funding will be used to provide travel grants to support students studying abroad during spring break of 2019 in London, United Kingdom where they will learn about the development of Western medicine in Europe," Dulaney said. "After returning, students will develop an independent research project on a topic in medical history."

Dulaney will teach the introduction to biology research course and lead the spring break study abroad program. The execution of the study abroad component will be supported by the Tennessee Consortium for International Studies a well-known organization that provides short-term study abroad programs to students in Tennessee colleges.

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