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Dr. Notaro Receives Hill Award

Dr. Notaro with his students, holding boxes of food

Steve Notaro, lecturer in the Department of Kinesiology and Community Health, was this year’s recipient of the Phyllis J. Hill Faculty Award for Exemplary Mentoring in the Edmund J. James Scholar Program. The James Scholar Program, the honors program in the College of Applied Health Sciences, recognizes the highest academically achieving undergraduate students and challenges them to engage in advanced scholarly activity.

Dr. Notaro regularly mentors 10 or more James Scholars students in his classes and on research teams. During the recent spring semester, one team of scholars analyzed variation in hospital prices in Illinois. A scholarly journal already has expressed interest in publishing their report when completed. Dr. Notaro involves his James Scholars in research that has real impact, guiding them through data collection and analysis, the writing of a scholarly paper, and its submission for publication.

In short, says Community Health advisor Carol Firkins, Dr. Notaro challenges his students to perform at the level of graduate students. “He provides undergraduate students with a real research experience that has resulted in peer-reviewed publications and conference presentations, and helped many begin their journey toward an advanced research degree.”

Dr. Notaro has been guiding undergraduate students through research projects for nearly 15 years. He became a lecturer in the Community Health program after completing his doctoral degree here, with a focus on health care policy. He enjoys spending one-on-one time with the students he mentors and watching them develop. "When the students put the effort in, it’s really rewarding," he said. "Getting them to the point of presenting at the Undergraduate Research Symposium, or submitting a manuscript with their name on it, or having a poster at a conference—it’s really what faculty members are supposed to be doing, and it carries a significant intrinsic reward."

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