Introduction:
When I was asked to interview a noteworthy professional, the first person who came to mind was Dr. Peter Scheifele. More commonly referred to as “Dr. Pete”, he is a distinguished researcher and professor who has been working at the University of Cincinnati for the last six years. Dr. Pete is a very accomplished individual with degrees in Physics, Oceanography, human and animal bioacoustics, a minor in hearing and speech sciences, a medical elective in head and neck anatomy and an elective in mechanical engineering; his full title is: Dr. Peter Scheifele, MDr, PhD, LCDR USN (Ret.). Not only is Dr. Pete a scholar, but he is also a Vietnam Veteran who served proudly as a Lieutenant Commander in the United States Navy. This personal interview gave me the opportunity to gain additional insight into the interesting career of Dr. Peter Scheifele and the unique animal bioacoustics research that he conducts at UC.
Experiences in the Navy:
Dr. Pete followed an unconventional path to his current position in academia. During the Vietnam War, Dr. Pete made the decision to enlist in the United States Navy; an experience which had a significant impact on his life. Dr. Pete explains “As far as I’m concerned, the Navy is responsible for everything that I know today, even preparing me to become a professor.” As a Navy diver, Dr. Scheifele was given the opportunity to travel the World and expand his knowledge of aquatics. According to The University of Cincinnati, “Scheifele has circumnavigated the globe twice, dived in each of the world’s oceans, and journeyed to the bottom of the Atlantic.” During his 23 years of active service, Dr. Pete did everything from explosive ordinance disposal to marine mammal research and eventually earned the title of Lieutenant Commander.
Education:
For Dr. Pete, these experiences led to an interest in the study of aquatic life forms, particularly the hearing abilities of marine mammals. Dr. Pete stated “When I became an officer in the navy, I was doing work largely with bottle nose dolphins and other marine mammals and that work required me to learn about their hearing abilities. So the Navy sent me to school to get various degrees that had to do with hearing and sound production in marine mammals.” From 1980 until 2003, Dr. Scheifele attended multiple different institutions including: the University of Hawaii, the University of Connecticut, and Mt. Saini Medical School. “I got an elective to learn about human hearing because there is no good model of hearing for a fully aquatic animal so I needed to know about that first” Dr. Pete stated. “As It turns out, my best fit was in communication sciences and disorders.” In addition to his studies, Dr. Pete also trained counter-narcotics service dogs for the US Coast Guard and in 1991, he began working at the National Undersea Research Center at the University of Connecticut.
Transition to the University of Cincinnati:
In 2007, Dr. Scheifele began working at the University of Cincinnati as the Assistant Professor of Audiology at the department of Communication Sciences and Disorders. He currently teaches 6-8 courses per semester in a variety of departments on campus including physics, and pre-med. One feature that sets Dr. Pete apart from other professors is that he utilizes cadaver dissection in class as an effective way to educate students about anatomical structures and physiological functions of the human body. Dr. Pete clarifies “I have found that diagrams are only useful to a point… people tend to retain information about muscles and how things work when they can actually see the real thing in front of them.” Dr. Pete also approaches his classes with a type of military attitude; even referring to his classroom as his submarine and calling his students shipmates. This unique style makes the class feel more like a unit and creates a mutual feeling of camaraderie between the students and the professor.
Fetch-Lab:
Since his arrival in 2007, Dr. Scheifele has greatly contributed to the Audiology department by establishing a one-of-a-kind research laboratory at UC called Fetch-Lab. This lab conducts animal bioacoustics research on many different types of animals including but not limited to dogs, horses, shark rays, polar bears and dolphins. Dr. Pete describes “We do large animal research in hearing, sound production, and neurology of large animals. Most of it is translational, meaning that things that we learn in lab can be turned back into looking at human hearing and seeing how it works.” This pioneering audiology research is exclusive to the University of Cincinnati; Dr. Pete explains “we are probably the only school on the planet in CSD that also includes animal bioacoustics and translational research with large animals. We are in fact the only school on the planet who offers a graduate certificate in animal audiology.”
Dr. Pete has conducted research at various zoos and aquaria including: the Georgia aquarium, Mystic Aquarium in Connecticut, the Cincinnati Zoo, and Newport Aquarium. He explains some of the difficulties that arise when working with animals: “Unlike human patients, animals can’t tell you where they hurt and usually they will try to disguise it. When you’re dealing with some type of large animal like a shark ray that can do a lot of damage, the testing becomes pretty complex and you really have to be on the ball.” In addition, Dr. Pete still continues to train and work with service dogs for the US Navy Seals and Army Rangers. Soon, he will be traveling to North Carolina and Finland to do further groundbreaking research with veteran service dogs that have developed post-traumatic stress disorder.
Work in Graduate School:
Dr. Pete is also a member of the CSD graduate faculty here at the University of Cincinnati. He advises students with graduate capstone experiences that are relative to his line of work and teaches graduate level courses in physics and anatomy. Currently he has somewhere between 16-18 graduate students working in his lab on capstones, dissertations and masters theses. In comparison to other professors, Dr. Pete truly enjoys working with students and genuinely cares about their education. When asked about the most rewarding aspect of his job, Dr. Pete responded: “Now that I am a civilian again and I am serving in an academic capacity, I really really love to teach… I have enjoyed and made success of my military career but I now enjoy being around the students and being in academia.”
Conclusion:
Dr. Pete’s pioneering work in the field of animal bioacoustics research and his unfaltering dedication to his students is what makes him a unique addition to the University. Throughout his career, Dr. Scheifele has been honored for his work in the field of acoustic research and has received many prestigious awards including: The Order of the Decibel award, the Presidential Award for research, and Allied Health Sciences Excellence in Teaching Award. In my opinion, his exceptional teaching methods and genuine passion for his work are the characteristics that distinctly set him apart from other professionals in his field. Dr. Pete gave me a final piece of advice: “the biggest thing is to get your feet about you and know that you have a love for CSD whether it be in speech or audiology. If you’re not having fun, then your not doing it right!” I look forward to having Dr. Pete as my professor in the future and I am excited to see where his Fetch-Lab research takes him next.