Taking the Stairs for Better Health

Before, they were drab and gray, dimly lit, and rarely used. But after a dozen students within the School of Nursing across the University painted four murals on each landing, the two stairways in Penn Nursing’s Claire M. Fagin Hall have transformed into works of art. More highly trafficked works of art.

Part beautification effort, the stairway renovation is the result of student research interests and faculty mentorship.

Under the direction of Assistant Professor Joseph Libonati, PhD, nursing undergraduate Yana Sigal developed the Stairs To Enhance Performance (STEP) project to encourage faculty, staff, students, and visitors to use the stairways in order to increase physical activity and improve their health. Through a grant from Penn Nursing, Ms. Sigal gathered participants, measured their physical activity at baseline and post-stairway renovation, and collected qualitative and quantitative data (through surveys and podometer results). Success of the project will lead to initiatives to other buildings on campus, with the same mission to increase activity and improve health.

“One of the goals of the Penn Nursing curriculum is to help our students find their voice,” said one faculty member. “Yana could have just suggested the School repaint the stairways. Instead, she wrote a proposal, secured funding, went through the IRB process, and managed the project from start to finish.”