Kara B. Dassel, PhD, FGSA, FAGHE
  • Professor, College Of Nursing

Current Courses

Spring 2025

  • GERON 6975-090
    Masters Project
  • GERON 6975-100
    Masters Project
  • GERON 6980-010
    Faculty Consultation
  • NURS 7980-004
    Faculty Consultation

Fall 2024

Summer 2024

Professional Organizations

  • University of Utah Academcy of Health Science Educators . 05/05/2020 - present. Position : Fellow .
  • International Society to Advance Alzheimer’s Research and Treatment (ISTAART). 02/01/2020 - present. Position : Member.
  • Gerontological Society of America. 11/16/2017 - present. Position : Fellow.
  • Academy for Gerontology in Higher Education . 02/25/2016 - present. Position : Fellow.
  • John Hartford Change AGEnt. 02/03/2016 - present. Position : Member.
  • Sigma Phi Omega International Gerontological Honors Association . 08/15/2013 - present. Position : Member.
  • Association for Gerontology in Higher Education. 08/01/2013 - present. Position : Member and Institutional Representative .
  • Gerontological Association of America. 08/01/2003 - present. Position : Member.

Teaching Philosophy

My personal philosophy towards teaching can be summarized as follows:

It is the responsibility of the instructor to set the tone of the learning environment.

I have taken numerous courses throughout my academic career and I have found that those classes that were the most intriguing and memorable were the ones where the instructor was enthusiastic about the opportunity to teach as well as the course material itself. The opposite impression given to students is deleterious to their learning, interest, and motivation in the class.

Students are vastly diverse.

Each student in the classroom is unique in his/her personality, learning style, and level of motivation. It is the responsibility of the instructor to embrace the individuality of each student and to respond accordingly by being flexible in the manner in which the course material is taught. By incorporating a variety of assignment, being mindful of using various teaching methods, resources and technology, the instructor ensures that every student’s personal learning style is attended to at one or multiple points throughout the course.

Learning is the responsibility of both the student and the instructor.

Learning is a cooperative process that is dependent upon both the skills of the instructor and the motivation of the students. The instructor must take the time and effort to prepare lectures in a way that is comprehensible, stimulating, and challenging for the class. It is the responsibility of the student to focus on learning the information that is presented as well as to take the initiative to ask questions or to seek additional help from the instructor if he/she feels that she does not understand the material.