VCS Teacher Peter Goff Receives Grant For Collaborative Research Project

Peter Goff, Science Department Chair and Past Vermont State Science Teacher of the Year. (Credit: Vermont Commons School)

Vermont Commons School Teacher Receives National Science Foundation Grant For Collaborative Research Project on Chagas Disease

“Our students will be working along side graduate students, post-docs, and experts in the field—not many high school students are afforded this level of research opportunity,” remarks Peter Goff, Science Department Chair and faculty member at Vermont Commons School.

A collaborative effort between the University of Vermont (Burlington, VT), Loyola University (New Orleans, LA), and La Universidad de San Carlos de Guatemala (Guatemala City, Guatemala) this grant from the National Science Foundation funds the study of Chagas disease in Guatemala and El Salvador. Chagas disease is endemic to 21 Latin American countries; approximately 110 million, mostly poor, rural people live in areas with the disease, and about 8 million people in endemic areas are infected. The disease is caused by a parasite that is primarily spread by blood-feeding insects. Those infected can remain carriers with no symptoms for 10-30 years before inflammation of the heart, esophagus, and other organs can lead to premature death.

[pullquote]Peter adds, “Students will be working with the leading experts on Chagas disease transmission and prevention, but by the end of the project, the students themselves will be the leading experts in the world on the model that they design.”[/pullquote]

The goal of the five-year study is to increase understanding of disease transmission dynamics to curb the spread of Chagas disease. The research team will choose two or three Vermont Commons School students to join their efforts. These students will build a system dynamics model for Chagas disease transmission. The ultimate goal of that model is to provide an alternative educational and management tool while engaging students in a real-world problem with a significant human impact, ultimately introducing them to a potential career path in science.

The project will culminate with presentations to the research team and university faculty, as well as attending and presenting their work at an International Infectious Disease Workshop with the research team. Other opportunities to share their work will be available throughout the 2015-16 school year.