Milwaukee School Research Articles

Influence of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Health-Care Career Interests Among High School Students

PurposeThis study investigates the influence of the COVID-19 pandemic on high school students' interest in health-care careers. MethodsA voluntary web-based survey, approved by the Medical College of Wisconsin's Institutional Review Board, was administered across eight high schools in Milwaukee and its suburbs in Wisconsin. The survey collected students' demographic details, opinions on the health-care system's pandemic response, and their interest in health-care careers before and after the pandemic. ResultsOut of 2,949 respondents, 29.9% were already contemplating a health-care career before the pandemic, with 27.7% indicating increased interest thereafter. Students not previously interested in health-care careers registered an 11.5% increase in interest due to the pandemic. Notably, the pandemic significantly boosted health-care career interest among females and freshmen. DiscussionThe COVID-19 pandemic has distinctly influenced high school students' interest in health-care careers, notably among females and freshmen. This finding has implications for addressing projected health-care professional shortages.

Formula Hybrid + Electric: Because it's crazy to try

This column is a change of pace, a report on Formula Hybrid+Electric contest held last May at the New Hampshire Motor Speedway in Loudon, NH. Formula Hybrid was founded by the Thayer School of Engineering at Dartmouth and is sponsored by, among others, IEEE and SAE. Formula Hybrid racers are modeled on scaled down formula race cars, and are single seat, open cockpit, and open wheel. Universities and colleges competing at the May event included Dartmouth, BU, Carnegie Mellon, Illinois Institute of Technology, Indiana and Purdue Universities, Lafayette, Lawrence Tech, MIT, Middlebury, Milwaukee School of Engineering, Princeton, RPI, Tufts, UVM, U. Victoria, U. Waterloo, U. Wyoming, WPI, and Yale.

Establishing an interdisciplinary research team for cardio-oncology artificial intelligence informatics precision and health equity

Study objectiveA multi-institutional interdisciplinary team was created to develop a research group focused on leveraging artificial intelligence and informatics for cardio-oncology patients. Cardio-oncology is an emerging medical field dedicated to prevention, screening, and management of adverse cardiovascular effects of cancer/cancer therapies. Cardiovascular disease is a leading cause of death in cancer survivors. Cardiovascular risk in these patients is higher than in the general population. However, prediction and prevention of adverse cardiovascular events in individuals with a history of cancer/cancer treatment is challenging. Thus, establishing an interdisciplinary team to create cardiovascular risk stratification clinical decision aids for integration into electronic health records for oncology patients was considered crucial. Design/setting/participantsCore team members from the Medical College of Wisconsin (MCW), University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee (UWM), and Milwaukee School of Engineering (MSOE), and additional members from Cleveland Clinic, Mayo Clinic, and other institutions have joined forces to apply high-performance computing in cardio-oncology. ResultsThe team is comprised of clinicians and researchers from relevant complementary and synergistic fields relevant to this work. The team has built an epidemiological cohort of ~5000 cancer survivors that will serve as a database for interdisciplinary multi-institutional artificial intelligence projects. ConclusionLessons learned from establishing this team, as well as initial findings from the epidemiology cohort, are presented. Barriers have been broken down to form a multi-institutional interdisciplinary team for health informatics research in cardio-oncology. A database of cancer survivors has been created collaboratively by the team and provides initial insight into cardiovascular outcomes and comorbidities in this population.

Through Jean Anyon’s “Screen Door”: The Differentially Racialized Incursion of the Neoliberal State in Milwaukee and Detroit Schools

Background/Context: Research has documented educational neoliberalization as a disrupter of “failing” urban schools and a driver of the remaking of urban space for development interests, through the dislocation of low-income communities of color. Such research draws upon Jean Anyon’s work on cities, schools, race, and inequality, yet undertheorizes the nexus of race and political economy by positing their interplay as straightforward and unvariegated. Purpose/Objective: This article documents differential racialization in neoliberal education reform across two urban contexts—Milwaukee and Detroit—and therewith seeks to build theory aligned with Jean Anyon’s final wish to complicate her work in urban educational political economy with more rich accounts of the intersection of race and political economy. Research Design: This comparative study utilizes discourse analysis of key educational policy documents and ethnographic work with educational policy actors in both contexts. Findings/Results: Market-based educational reform agendas in the two cities’ school systems proceeded from differing assemblages of political actors and regional particularities, and had as primary demonstrative objective different neoliberal outcomes. While in Milwaukee neoliberals capitalized upon Black disaffection from public schools to demonstrate the political viability of diverting public educational funds to the private sector, the imposition of such reform in Detroit buttressed the spatial reorganization of a shrinking city for the purpose of accumulation by dispossession rooted in the real estate market. Conclusions/Recommendations: Drawing upon these findings, the study recommends a more refined critical racial lens to augment Jean Anyon’s political economy, arguing for a more nuanced and practicable understanding of racialized neoliberal urbanism and its contestation.

Judge rules against former employee

Case name: Fitzpatrick v. Milwaukee School of Engineering, No. 18‐cv‐0541 (E.D. Wis. 12/02/20).

Judge rules against former employee

Case name: Fitzpatrick v. Milwaukee School of Engineering, No. 18‐cv‐0541 (E.D. Wis. 12/02/20).

Between Pints and Performances

Abstract German immigrants to the United States in the late 1840s faced isolation and a cultural vacuum. Pockets of community could be found in the traditional German turnvereins (gymnastic clubs or societies) that offered the new German immigrants a warm but culturally insulated haven. The work of George Brosius, one of the leading gymnastic instructors in the American turner movement and director of the Turner's Normal School in Milwaukee, rarely discussed in previous research, contributed to the elevation of the German American Turner societies from a bastion of German culture to a prominent part of American physical culture. This will be shown through his contribution as a gymnastics instructor and later director of the American Turner Union's Normal School in Milwaukee and his work as a coach. We aim to solidify the American-born George Brosius's place among the pantheon of nineteenth-century figures of physical culture.

July 2021 Placement Ads

July 2021 Placement Ads

Considering Social Equity in a New Public Management Reform: Evidence from Milwaukee, Wisconsin

This article uses the case of independent charter schools in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, to test whether New Public Management style reforms are compatible with the public administration pillar of social equity. Using three years of data, the author identifies inequities in access and outcomes due to the structural differences between charter and traditional public schools. Structural differences include governance, admissions, and transportation policies. Overall, independent charter schools serve fewer Black pupils, are less accessible, but do obtain comparatively better achievement scores. The article concludes with suggestions on how metagovernance can be used to ensure social equity in decentralized governance reforms. The study demonstrates how social equity can be analytically evaluated in a governance reform environment, and provides guidance on how structural barriers to social equity can be overcome in complex governing networks.

Lane College Science Club: Engaging Students in Undergraduate Research and Outreach

Lane College is a Historically Black College located in Jackson, TN with a strong history of educating underserved, minority students. Our overall goal within the Science Division is to increase the number of African American students entering STEM fields. To that end, the Lane College Science Club was first established, to provide students with an interest in Biology and Chemistry information about careers, scholarships, awards, and to connect students with Biology and Chemistry faculty. Since affiliating with ASBMB Student Chapters and the ASCB MAC Linkage Fellows Program, we have expanded Science Club to include undergraduate research experiences and community outreach. Also, Science Club is partnering with the Lane College Career Center to provide students with support for applying to internships and graduate programs. Science Club students have completed research projects surveying microorganisms in the Lane College Pond and antibiotic resistance bacteria on the campus. Additionally, in collaboration with Dr. Margaret Franzen at Milwaukee School of Engineering Center for Biomolecular Modeling CREST program, our Science Club students have built 3D models of proteins involved in signal transduction and drug resistance. Students have also participated in community outreach with Madison County and Shelby County Schools. For example, Science Club students have worked with over 350 K-5 children at Lincoln Elementary and 40 second graders at Denmark Elementary between 2017 and 2020. Outreach projects have included lessons on cell structure, phototaxis, DNA extraction, acid-base chemistry, microscopy, enzyme catalysis, and static electricity. These activities have positively impacted Lane College students, with an increase in the number of Biology and Chemistry graduates entering Master and Doctoral programs or entering the STEM workforce.

A virtual classroom activity for teaching sunlight‐initiated DNA damage and its protection

As a consequence of COVID-19 pandemic, most of classroom teaching went virtual in the academic year 2020-21. We took this opportunity to create a virtual activity for a biochemistry course for undergraduate nursing students at Milwaukee School of Engineering. It is well understood that prolonged exposure to sunlight is one of the major causes of skin cancer due to mutations in the keratinocyte DNA. Skin cancer is one of the most common forms of cancer in the US. UV-B radiation in the region of 290-320 nm is absorbed by skin cells resulting in mutated DNA which can lead to cancer. We developed the virtual activity with a dual purpose in mind. First, the activity would enhance their learning experience about DNA mutations using a 3D-printed model showing the biochemical DNA damage which could lead to skin cancer. Second, the activity could increase general awareness among students about the dangers of UVB-radiation exposure and protection strategies by directly testing everyday products such as sunscreens. We randomly picked nine commercially available sunscreens with various SPF values and tested their ability to protect from UVB radiation. Testing for protection from UVB radiation was performed using an in-house created customized chamber equipped with a UVB light source emitting a single wavelength at 310 nm. A thin, even layer of sunscreen was applied on a thin clear plastic wrap and exposed to UVB light. The sunscreens’ ability to block UVB radiation was quantitated compared to a control sample with no sunscreen.Further, using a 3D model of a DNA segment created by 3D printing at the Center for Biomolecular Modeling, we explained molecular-level changes. We created a two-part video. Part I narrates details of the sunscreen protection experiment. Part II explains the molecular details of DNA damage using 3D-printed model including (i) location of a broken A-T hydrogen bond (ii) location ofa T-T dimer and discussion of possible impact of the change in the DNA structure and (iii) explaining the formation of a ‘kink’ in the DNA strand as a result of the T-T photoproduct. The video will be accompanied by a student survey questionnaire on Canvas LMS. The goal of this study is to quantitatively test students’ understanding of this biochemistry topic before and after watching the virtual activity. Further, it is our hope that the activity will also increase general awareness among nursing students about the harmful effects of ultraviolet radiation exposure.

“Say What you Really Believe”1: Freedom Schools, Youth Empowerment, and Black Power in 1960s Milwaukee

Background The historical literature on the civil rights movement has tended to underemphasize the movement's educational activities, while literature on the civil rights and Black Power movements has overemphasized ideological and tactical differences between these chapters in the struggle for Black liberation. A few studies have examined Freedom Schools—educational projects established as part of larger civil rights campaigns—but these studies have focused almost exclusively on Freedom Schools in the Southern context. Purpose Focusing on Freedom Schools organized as part of a school desegregation campaign in Milwaukee during the mid-1960s, this article explores the pedagogical purpose and philosophy of the Freedom Schools, as distinct from other protest activities undertaken as part of the campaign, as well as the legacy of the Freedom Schools after the campaign's conclusion. Research Design This historical analysis examines materials such as lesson plans, flyers, and correspondence from the archives of the Milwaukee United School Integration Committee (MUSIC), the organization responsible for the school desegregation campaign. Findings This article shows that core components of the Freedom School curriculum, which sought to challenge deficit-oriented policies and empower youth to create social change, foreshadowed key tenets of Black Power ideology. Conclusions These findings suggest that the Freedom Schools, as important sites of ideological development, highlight continuity between the civil rights and Black Power movements and situate the Freedom Schools as part of a longer tradition of education for liberation and self-determination.

Barreling Forward: Advancements in De Novo Protein Design

Natural evolution and protein redesign have only explored a tiny fraction of theoretically possible protein structures. However, de novo protein design will prove powerful in engineering novel proteins with specific functions by comprehensively sampling the protein space using computational methods guided by protein folding principles. De novo protein design involves working backwards from a desired protein with special structure and function to derive an amino acid sequence capable of folding into such a conformation—a challenging approach due to the vast number of protein conformations to evaluate. Here, we present a review of the latest advancements in de novo protein design methods and applications in conjunction with a physical model of a de novo fluorescence‐activating β‐barrel protein. Approaches to de novo protein design include: (1) simulating the folding of a fixed amino acid sequence to determine each residue’s most stable conformation, (2) determining the amino acid sequence that folds into a desired protein conformation, and (3) performing comprehensive rapid evaluations of each possible conformation. This novel protein is then synthesized and validated through in vitro or in vivo assays. In one recent breakthrough by Baker et. al., a de novo approach was used to design a β‐barrel protein comprised of a cylindrical pleated β‐sheet which binds the fluorogenic compound DFHBI. This study is the first instance of a de novo protein designed to bind to a small molecule of interest, with applications in visualizing cell movement, gene expression, DNA replication, protein translation, and tumor progression. In designing this fluorescence activating β‐barrel protein, structural irregularities were introduced to stabilize the structure and enlarge the β‐barrel cavity. Subsequently, the optimal sequences for β‐barrels with reasonable binding site and affinity for DFHBI were designed by computationally adjusting individual residue conformations. Finally, this optimized protein was synthesized, which had greater affinity with DFHBI and increased fluorescence in in vitro and in vivo experiments.Support or Funding InformationThis is a SMART Team project supported through the contributions of Dr. Jinan Wang of the University of Kansas Center for Computational Biology, the Milwaukee School of Engineering, and the Olathe Medical Professions 21st Century Academy.

Development of a hands‐on learning activity on potential DNA damage and skin cancer for a nursing biochemistry class

Skin cancer (basal cell carcinoma) is one of the most common forms of cancer in the US (about 4.3 million cases/year). Prolonged exposure to sunlight is one of the major causes of skin cancer due to mutations in the DNA. Ultraviolet‐B (UV‐B) radiations in the region of 290–320 nm of the solar spectrum are absorbed by basal keratinocyte cells resulting in mutated DNA leading to cancer. We developed a two‐part active learning experience for the nursing biochemistry class. Part I: In this activity, the relative intensity of UV radiation at 308 nm in the absence and presence of sunscreen was measured using a UVX Digital Radiometer‐UVX31 Sensor by first‐year nursing students in a biochemistry course at the Milwaukee School of Engineering (MSOE). A class of 20 students brought in their own commercially available sunscreens to class. Students tested the sunscreens’ ability to block the UVB light. A thin layer of sunscreen was applied to a plastic wrap sheet and placed between the UV source and the sensor. Students compared the intensity of the UV light (in mW/cm2) transmitted through an uncoated and coated plastic wrap. They then observed that different commercial sunscreens have different abilities to block UV light.DNA damage by UVB causes mutations due to the development of cyclobutane‐pyridine photodimers commonly recognized as thymine‐thymine (T‐T) dimers. Part II: Students made connections between the real‐life classroom activity performed in Part I and a three‐dimensional physical model of DNA segment (crystal structure source entries: ndb UD0053 or PDB 1SM5) showing the formation of the T‐T dimer using a hand‐held model and images. The model was constructed by 3D‐printing. Students were challenged to locate the T‐T dimers in the model and discuss the possible impact of the change in the DNA structure.The activity motivated the nursing biochemistry students and enhanced their learning experience with DNA mutations by directly relating it to everyday products such as sunscreens and a 3‐D model showing the biochemical DNA damage which could lead to skin cancer. Additionally, the two‐part activity enhanced one‐on‐one student‐faculty interactions in the classroom. In the future we plan to conduct an in‐depth quantitative educational study to understand the benefits of this active learning exercise as compared to traditional classroom instruction.Support or Funding InformationSummer professional development grant, Milwaukee School of Engineering, Milwaukee, WI. Center for BioMolecular Modeling (CBM), Milwaukee School of Engineering, Milwaukee, WI.

Fatty Acid Regulation of Virulence in Vibrio cholerae: A Structural Analysis of Unbound, Ligand‐Bound, and DNA‐Bound ToxT

Vibrio cholerae is an infectious bacterium that causes activation of transmembrane ion channels responsible for mediating the tonicity of cells in the small intestine. Activation of these ion channels results in osmotic movement into the small intestine, thus dehydrating cells and the infected individual. The transcription factor, ToxT, upregulates production of cholera toxin (CT) and the toxin coregulated pilus (TCP), key virulence factors in the progression of cholera. ToxT, a member of the AraC family of transcriptional regulators, has been crystallized in the presence of an unsaturated fatty acid (UFA) revealing a repressed form of the transcription factor in a conformation that prevents DNA binding. Two □‐helices in the DNA binding domain (DBD), □6 and □9, must be parallel to bind consecutive major grooves in the DNA. In the UFA‐bound structure, these helices are non‐parallel, supporting the model that ligand binding to ToxT prevents DNA binding. ToxT has been shown biochemically to be homodimeric when bound to DNA. However, crystallization of the DNA bound form of ToxT has been challenging due to instability of the complex. Recently, a natural variant of ToxT with increased solubility has been crystallized in the presence and absence of UFA. Crystallization of the apo form of ToxT required a lysine to alanine substitution at position 231 in the ligand‐binding pocket of the protein to prevent UFA binding. Although the structure of apo‐ToxT is highly similar to the UFA‐bound structure, the apo version was shown to be more flexible than ligand‐bound ToxT, supporting a model in which □6 and □9 in each subunit of dimeric ToxT are parallel and capable of binding to DNA. Using the structures described in this study, The Pingry School SMART (Students Modeling A Research Topic) Team used a 3D‐printer from the Milwaukee School of Engineering (MSOE) to model the apo structure and the dimeric DNA‐bound model of ToxT. These models support an in‐depth analysis of ToxT structural conformations in support of the proposed mechanism of regulation. A detailed structural understanding of ToxT may support future development of vaccines and therapeutics for cholera and other pathogens whose toxicity is regulated by AraC family members.

A Physical Model for Exploring Drug Design to Treat Break‐bone Fever

Annually, dengue fever affects an estimated 390 million people worldwide (more than the population of the entire United States). Symptoms include high fever, headache, vomiting, and muscle and joint pain so extreme it is also known as “break‐bone fever”. Severe infection can lead to dengue hemorrhagic fever, dengue shock syndrome, and can be fatal. The disease is transmitted by mosquitos in tropical areas, and is caused by the single‐stranded RNA dengue virus (DENV). Currently the only treatment for patients infected with DENV is rest and hydration. The Schiffer lab has focused on the DENV NS2/NS3 serine protease as a potential drug target, because it is essential for DENV maturation. The serine protease inhibitor aprotinin (CP1) was the starting point for design of cyclic peptide (CP) inhibitors targeting DENV protease. A series of CP‐inhibitors were designed and tested, each with varying chemical properties. We designed a physical model of the DENV protease active site that displays the interactions with six different CP‐inhibitors. The model demonstrates how CP‐inhibitor binding is impacted by drug size, flexibility, polarity, and ability to form intermolecular interactions (Lipinski’s Rule of Five). Our model also highlights how drug structure drives drug function, and connects meaningfully to undergraduate studies of biology and chemistry at many levels. The DENV protease active site model, with the set of six CP‐inhibitors, is a useful classroom tool to show how basic biological and chemical principals are relevant to modern drug design.Support or Funding InformationThe CREST Program is funded through DUE‐IUSE #1725940 awarded to Milwaukee School of Engineering Center for BioMolecular Modeling.

Influenza A Virus Escape Mutations and their Effects on Binding Affinity

The Influenza A virus (IAV) causes a common and potentially fatal infection. The Center for Disease Control reports that 3–11% of the U.S. population is affected annually by IAV. The 2017–2018 burden of influenza led to over 950,000 patient hospitalizations and almost 80,000 deaths. The surface of IAV contains two proteins essential for infection: hemagglutinin (HA) and neuraminidase (NA). HA binds to a receptor on an epithelial host cell surface, and helps IAV penetrate the cell and release the viral RNA genome. As newly formed IAV particles leave the infected cell, NA assists in viral release and driving the infection of neighboring cells. Due to frequent, natural mutations in the IAV genome, annual IAV vaccines are engineered but are not always effective. The Schiffer Lab propagated IAV in vitro in the presence of an antibody to identify mutations of IAV that can escape immune detection. A critical asparagine located in the binding pocket of HA (N203HA) facilitates a hydrogen bond to sialic acid on LSTc (a human receptor analog). The N203VHA escape mutation disrupts the virus‐ligand interaction; however, an allosteric mutation on NA (E329KNA) can compensate for the HA mutation. Our 3‐D printed model of the HA active site visually depicts the binding of the N203 residue with the LSTc. This model further illustrates that viruses can use allosteric mutations to circumvent the immune system. Physically modeling the active site of HA allows students to investigate how substrates fit into active sites and visualize mutations within proteins.Support or Funding InformationThe CREST Program is funded through DUE‐IUSE #1725940 awarded to Milwaukee School of Engineering Center for BioMolecular Modeling.

Civil Society Regimes and School Choice Reforms: Evidence from Sweden and Milwaukee

AbstractWe examine the effects of school choice reforms implemented in the early 1990s in two different settings: Sweden and Milwaukee (WI, U.S.). We show how both the ideological and theoretical arguments for choice reform were similar in the two contexts, yet the consequences in terms of the organizational outcome and institutional sector configuration ended up strikingly dissimilar. While the new group of actors in the Swedish school system consisted primarily of large-scale for-profit schools, with only a minor share of the expansion being catered to by nonprofit actors, the Milwaukee school choice program became dominated by small-scale nonprofit schools operated by religious communities. We seek to explicate these differences by drawing on the welfare state literature and social origins theory, as well as from organizational and historical institutional theory. We argue that the resulting composition of providers is directly related to the deep-seated differences in the civil society regimes operating in the two contexts.

Editorial Team Introduction

Editorial Team Introduction

Development of a directed beam monochromatic UV light device for investigation of DNA damage in skin cancer

Skin cancer is one of the most common forms of cancer in US. Prolonged exposure to sunlight is one of the major causes of skin cancer. UV‐B radiations in the region of 290–320 nm of the solar spectrum are absorbed by skin cells resulting in mutated DNA leading to cancer. A need to for a directed beam source of single wavelength UVB light to study DNA damage prompted us to develop this light source. We developed a small portable UVB light source with directed beam emitting single wavelength at 308 nm. A mixture of Xe and Cl was used to form the XeCl* excimer which specifically emits the wavelength of 308 nm. The source is completely sealed and portable and can be transported to any laboratory, classroom or clinic. The source generates UVB light inside a ¼ inch diameter sealed quartz tube such that the light leaves from one end of the tube (directed beam) which can be regulated in intensity. The utility of the UVB source was tested by studying quantitative DNA damage (6–4 photoproducts) in calf thymus DNA. We conclude that the formation of 6–4 pyrimidine‐pyrimidone photoproducts is proportional to the dose of UVB radiation. In addition to skin cancer research, future application of the source could also include classroom demonstrations and even precision laser phototherapy of skin conditions such as Vitiligo.Support or Funding InformationMilwaukee School of Engineering □ Summer Professional Development Grant‐2018This abstract is from the Experimental Biology 2019 Meeting. There is no full text article associated with this abstract published in The FASEB Journal.