Register now: Tools for Teaching in Medical Education

The Office of Faculty Affairs and Faculty Development invites Whiddon College of Medicine faculty and residents to register for the Tools for Teaching in Medical Education program.  

This six-session course will be offered on Tuesday afternoons from 2 to 4 p.m. in the Strada Patient Care Center first-floor conference room.

• Aug. 15: Backward Course Design: Part 1
• Aug. 29: Backward Course Design: Part 2
• Sept. 12: Interactive & Active Learning: Technology in the Classroom
• Sept. 26: Assessment Design & Feedback
• Oct. 10: Writing & Analyzing Exam Questions
• Oct. 24: Small Group/Bedside Teaching

Sessions will be taught by faculty and staff from the Whiddon College of Medicine and USA Health. Two hours CME per session will be provided.

Contact Amanda Arnold at akarnold@southalabama.edu for more information or to register. Space is limited.

Meet a Med Student: Ben Loftis

Ben Loftis 

Age: 24

Class: 2026

Hometown: Montgomery, Alabama

Undergraduate education: B.S. in biomedical sciences, Auburn University 

What do you enjoy most about being a medical student at the Whiddon College of Medicine?
The community. Everyone supports each other and has made this journey so much easier. The faculty and my fellow classmates have made the last year better than I could have imagined when I first started. I can’t wait to see what the rest of my years at South will be like.

Are you involved in any research, organizations or other initiatives at the College of Medicine?
Physician wellness and burnout research, orientation leader, wellness house leader, Culinary and Lifestyle Medicine Interest Group

What are your interests and hobbies?
I love to bake bread, play pickleball, and try new restaurants around town.

What is something unique about you?
I ran into the doorframe so much as a child there is a permanent knot on my forehead.

Basic medical sciences student presents research at international conference

Ashley Camp

Ashley Camp, a second-year student in the Basic Medical Sciences Graduate Program at the Whiddon College of Medicine, was selected to present her research at the American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology (ASBMB) annual conference in Potomac, Maryland, this summer.    

The presentation focused on genomic editing of human HEK-293 cells, generating lines recapitulating pathogenic variant of PPP2R5D, associated with Jordan’s Syndrome, which revealed altered signaling pathways that coordinated cell growth.  

Identified in 2014, Jordan’s Syndrome causes severe developmental disorders in children identified with mutations in certain genes. Some variants of these genes are associated with developmental delays and autism, among other health issues.   

Camp, who is in the graduate program’s molecular, cell and cancer track, conducts research in the lab of Richard Honkanen, Ph.D., professor and chair of the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology.  

She earned an undergraduate degree from Point Park University in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and a master’s degree from the University of South Alabama.   

Founded in 1906, the ASBMB has a long history of advancing the mechanistic understanding of nature through promotion of the highest-quality research in biochemistry and molecular biology. The society is committed to advancing scientific knowledge by publishing and reporting on significant and enduring research.  

Pre-orientation course prepares medical students for academic success

Incoming students take part in a pre-orientation course designed to help them achieve academic excellence in medical school.

The Office of Academic Success at the Whiddon College of Medicine offered a pre-orientation course for incoming medical students titled Rx For Success: Achieving Academic Excellence in Medical School. Forty-seven students participated in the course, which ran July 17-20 with Zoom and in-person sections.

David S. Williams, Ph.D., M.P.A., with M2 facilitators

Emi Ferderber, Shalin Patel and Cana Brown.

Students were taught how to create implementation plans for evidence-based learning strategies, time-management, and organization skills essential to success in medical school. Additionally, they reflected on the importance of collaboration, teamwork and professional behavior as they begin their medical school journey.

The culminating assignment was to create individual learning plans using learning science and self-assessments to help them set and achieve their goals throughout the year. 

“It was great having our first-year students online and on campus to help build community,” said David S. Williams, Ph.D., M.P.A., assistant dean for institutional and academic success. “We look forward to supporting all of our medical school students with these new programs and resources as we embark on this new academic year.”

Second-year medical students Emi Ferderber, Shalin Patel and Cana Brown helped Williams facilitate the course, including teaching a full lesson on communication and professionalism. 

The Office of Academic Success plans to offer the pre-orientation course each summer. 

Incoming first-year students collaborate during a session.