Rocky Mount, N.C.— Dr. Erica F. Kosal, Associate Professor of Biology at North Carolina Wesleyan College, has been elected a 2008-2009 SENCER Leadership Fellow by the National Fellowship Board of the National Center for Science and Civic Engagement.

Dr. Kosal was one of only 76 fellows chosen from among 1,300 faculty members and academic leaders eligible for a SENCER fellowship. SENCER is an acronym for Science Education for New Civic Engagements and Responsibilities.

The fellowships honor educators for exemplary leadership and commitment to the improvement of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics education. The fellowships provide opportunities for honorees to continue their efforts to stimulate student engagement in science and mathematics through courses and programs focused on real world problems. This method extends student learning beyond the curriculum to impact the broader community and society.

On behalf of the National Fellowship Board, Dr. David Ferguson, distinguished service professor of Stony Brook University and board chair, expressed his congratulations. “Professor Kosal is a passionate and effective advocate for her students, for improving learning, and for biology itself. This passion has been translated into a string of noteworthy accomplishments including the development of two SENCER courses and the publication of case studies that assist students in deepening their learning by applying what they know to situations that simulate real-world situations. Dr. Kosal is interested in learning more in a formal way about what motivates learning and how implementing SENCER ideals may enhance that learning.

“As a SENCER Leadership Fellow, Dr. Kosal plans to pursue this inquiry into the student motivation, to disseminate SENCER ideals on campus (with special attention to forming collaborations with teacher educators), and to expand her collaborations with colleagues at other institutions. She expects that these collaborations will lead to the development of new intercollegiate, trans-disciplinary courses, like the one she helped develop with colleagues at Meredith College and the University of South Carolina—Sumter.”

Dr. David Burns, executive director of the national Center for Science and Civic Engagement, said the National Fellowship Board and the National Center look forward to having the benefit of Dr. Kosal’s advice and counsel as they plan for the future.