Jennifer Osterhage | University of Kentucky College of Arts & Sciences

Jennifer Osterhage

Associate Professor

Director, S-STEM Pogram

I earned my B.S. in Biology from the University of Kentucky in 2002. As a Ph.D. student at Vanderbilt University, I studied the molecular mechanisms that maintain telomeres (the protein-DNA complexes at the ends of linear chromosomes). I also participated in the Teaching Certificate Program offered through Vanderbilt's Center for Teaching, where my love of teaching began.

At UK, I have taught BIO 148 (Introductory Biology I) to over 6000 students. I have also taught Genetics (BIO 304) and Cell Biology (BIO 315) courses, as well as upper-level seminars. I truly enjoy being in the classroom and having the opportunity to share my love of biology with students. I use an active learning approach which involves demonstrations, activities, and interactive questioning during class. I'm dedicated to first-year student success and helping students successfully transition to college. I served as the Director of Undergraduate Studies for the Biology major from 2015-2021, and I currently direct the S-STEM program, a scholarship and curricular program for Biology and Neuroscience majors. I direct the Biology Learning and Motivation (BLAM) lab at UK, which seeks to understand and promote evidence-based strategies to help students succeed in introductory biology. I am also interested in understanding what motivates students to learn, especially in undergraduate STEM contexts.

Contact Information

jennifer.osterhage@uky.edu

115B T.H Morgan Building

(859) 257-9322

Education

B.S. in Biology from the University of Kentucky, 2002

Ph.D. in Molecular Biology from Vanderbilt University, 2007

Graduate Teaching Certificate awarded from Vanderbilt University Center for Teaching, 2007

Postdoctoral Training, University of Kentucky, 2010-2011

Graduate Certificate in Research Methods in Education, 2022

Research Interests

Metacognition
Motivation
Biology Education

Affiliations

Biology
Biology Education

Curriculum Vitae (CV)
Biology Learning and Motivation Lab

Selected Publications

Selected Publications:

Carr, S* Wilson, T., Slone, S., Karanja, K^.+, & Osterhage, J. (2024). Assigned group work is associated with increased student motivation and belonging an asynchronous online physiology laboratory course. Advances in Physiology Education. https://doi.org/10.1152/advan.00064.2024

Osterhage, J., Caybas, U., Han, J., & Usher, E. (2024). “I’m Just Not Very Interested”: Academic Major and Timing of Enrollment Predict Motivation in an Introductory Biology Course. Journal of Biological Sciences Education. https://doi.org/10.1080/00219266.2024.2342801

Kim, M. H., Han, J., Buford, K.*, Osterhage, J. & Usher, E. (2024). Undergraduate student perceptions of instructor mindset and academic performance: A motivational climate theory perspective. Contemporary Educational Psychology. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cedpsych.2024.102280

Murray, C. & Osterhage, J. (2024). “They Helped Me Through the Semester”: Electronic Instructor Messages Can Foster the Instructor-Student Relationship. The Journal of Microbiology and Biology Education. https://doi.org/10.1128/jmbe.00004-24

Worick, C.E.*, Usher, E.L., Osterhage, J., Love, A.M.A., & Keller, P. S. (2023). Brief research report: Self-efficacy mediates association between implicit theories of willpower and learning strategies. The Journal of Experimental Education. https:doi.org/10.1080/00220973.2023.2209861

Osterhage, J. & Rogers-Carpenter, K. (2022). Combatting Misinformation through Science Communication Training. The American Biology Teacher, 84(7): 390-395.

8. Bernstein,^,J.M, Voris, H., Stuart, B., Phimmachak, S., Seateun^,S., Sivongxay^,N., Neang^,T., Karns, D., Andrews, H., Osterhage, J., Phipps, E., & Ruane S. (2022). Undescribed diversity in a widespread, common group of Asian mud snakes (Serpentes: Homalopsidae: Hypsiscopus). Ichthyology and Herpetology, 110, No. 3, 561–574. DOI: 10.1643/h2022015

Osterhage, Jennifer. (2021). Persistent Miscalibration for High and Low Achievers Despite Practice Test Feedback in an Introductory Biology Course. Journal of Microbiology and Biology Education 22(2). https://doi.org/10.1128/jmbe.00139-21

Osterhage, Jennifer, Ellen L. Usher, Trisha A. Douin, and William M. Bailey. (2019). Opportunities for Self-evaluation Increase Student Calibration in an Introductory Biology Course. CBE: Life Sciences Education. 18 (2). Article 16

Osterhage, Jennifer (2018). "Ten First Years," Greater Faculties: A Review of Teaching and Learning: Vol. 2, Article 2.

Osterhage, Jennifer, and Katherine L. Friedman. Chromosome End Maintenance by Telomerase. J Biol Chem. 284(24):16061-5 (2009).

Osterhage, Jennifer, Jennell Talley, and Katherine L. Friedman. Proteasome-dependent degradation of Est1p regulates the cell cycle-restricted assembly of telomerase in Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Nature Structural and Molecular Biology 13(8), 720-728 (2006).

Vimoksalehi Lukoschek, Jennifer Osterhage, Daryl R. Karns, John C. Murphy, and Harold K. Voris. Phylogeography of the Mekong mud snake (Enhydris subtaeniata): the biogeographic importance of dynamic river drainages and fluctuating sea levels for semi-aquatic taxa in Indo-China. Ecology and Evolution 1(3), 330-42 (2011).

Karns, Daryl R., Vimoksalehi Lukoschek, Jennifer Osterhage, John Murphy, and Harold Voris. Phylogeny and biogeography of the Enhydris clade (Serpentes: Homalopsidae). Zootaxa 2452, 18-30. ISSN 1175-5334 (2010).