Dane Pratt’s research career began in a beauty salon.
And no, he wasn’t experimenting with manis or pedis or perms.
Dane’s mother, Deb, styles the hair of University of Iowa professor Kathleen Sluka, who is the principal investigator in a research lab for the Department of Physical Therapy and Rehabilitation Science.
Focus on affordability
In advance of President Barack Obama's April 25 UI speech, Iowa Now presents a series of stories about opportunities that make an Iowa education possible for students from different backgrounds.
When Dane was a high school junior, his mother mentioned to Sluka that he was looking for a job and that he was somewhat interested in science.
“Lo and behold,” Pratt says, “the planets aligned.”
Fast forward six years (Pratt took a year off after high school and joined the National Guard) and the Oxford, Iowa, native who was “somewhat interested in science” is a junior neurobiology major and the lead researcher and manuscript author on a project Sluka says will have a significant impact on the pain field.
Pratt is conducting an innovative study of supraspinal processing of pain in mice, examining escape avoidance, learned avoidance, and activity avoidance in ways that had never been done before. In fact, he designed and built the equipment himself and invented the techniques.
He’s come a long way from washing dishes and taking out the trash, which, by the way, is still part of his job description as a work-study employee in the lab. He certainly didn’t envision this when he started six years ago, just looking for some extra cash.
Each year, thousands of University of Iowa students help offset the cost of education with the support of student employment, which also improves retention and helps students develop skills and relationships that lead to jobs after graduation.
In fiscal year 2011, 7,087 students earned more than $19.7 million working part-time jobs on campus, and 1,430 students earned more than $2.1 million in work-study positions.
“I've certainly evolved,” Pratt says. “It’s not something that happened overnight. It took a lot of work.”
Pratt is no stranger to hard work, and he’s not afraid of it either. He has ascended to the rank Senior Airman in the 132nd Iowa Air National Guard, in which he serves as an F-16 crew chief. The military experience has instilled a set of values in him that have extended into the lab, the classroom, and well beyond.
“Integrity first, service before self, and excellence in all we do is something that becomes more than a catchphrase,” Pratt says. “It gets drilled into your mind and becomes something you strive for. You wake up every morning with the idea of 'what am I going to do today that betters me tomorrow?'”
That mindset, that focused pursuit of excellence, has propelled Pratt and made a lasting impact on those around him. He has been named to the dean’s list and this spring was honored as the University of Iowa Student Employee of the Year.
“Dane is an excellent and model student who goes above and beyond his job duties,” Sluka wrote in his nomination letter.
For Pratt, it has become so much more than a job. Yes, he’s still earning extra money, which helps offset the costs associated with his education, but the lab experience has proven to be the true reward.
“The money is nice,” Pratt says. “There is nothing better than getting paid to do what you love to do. But my biggest paycheck is what I learn from the people here. They’re paying me in knowledge; they’re paying me in experience.”