INSTRUCTORS
Dr. Carla Edge Oldham is currently an Assistant Research Professor in the Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences/BRITE at North Carolina Central University. Dr. Oldham’s overall research interest is to understand how cell signaling is altered by diseases, such as cancer and neurodegenerative diseases with implications for drug discovery. She has mentored the research of a number of undergraduate and graduate students throughout her career. In addition to teaching and mentoring, she has also been involved in developing and facilitating hands-on science activities for camps and an afterschool program as well as facilitating workshops for teachers to provide training to enhance science learning for elementary, middle, and high school students. Dr. Oldham received her B.S. in Chemistry from Hampton University and Ph.D. in Biochemistry/Molecular Biology from Purdue University.
Eric Saliim Growing up in the South, he had a chance to witness science every day. “Whether it was growing crops or livestock, I witnessed the full circle of life.” Since 2000, Saliim has taught biology 1100 – general biology, a requirement for non-science majors. He is known for his nontraditional classroom methods, including implementing both Twitter and Instagram into his classes. A visual learner himself, Saliim says he tries to make
analogies between science and everyday life. “Everything that happens in a class can be used as a teachable moment,” said Saliim, who, unlike most professors, does not ask his students to turn off their cell phones. Instead he allows the use of smart phones to search for answers to questions he may pose. “My colleagues may think I’m not teaching because we laugh and talk, but science is about inquiry. You have to educate and entertain.”
COLLEGE:North Carolina Central University
COLLEGE MAJOR: Biology
ADVANCED DEGREE: Biology