Elsie Effah Kaufmann, a prominent scientist promoting STEM education in Ghana

Elsie Effah Kaufmann is a ghanaian researcher and biomedical engineer. Recently, she was appointed as the first female Dean of the University of  Ghana’s School of engineering. She is best known as the Host and Quiz Mistress of the Ghana National Science and Maths quizz TV Programme since 2006, a famous maths competition for senior high schools in Ghana.

Elsie Effah Kaufmann is a prominent ghanaian researcher who has contributed immensely towards the development of Science education at all levels in Ghana and beyond. At the University of Ghana where she has been teaching for years, she contributed to establishing new departments of  different fields of science.

In 2001, she was nominated by the Academic Board of the university to make proposals to launch the then faculty of engineering sciences, now the School of Engineering sciences. Her major role was to develop the academic programme and curriculum for Biomedical Engineering and coordinate the development of the Materials science and Engineering programme  and curriculum. From 2001 to 2006, she was a member of the committee that prepared proposals to establish the departments of physiotherapy, radiography, Audiology and Medical Physics.

Elsie began her education in the field of sciences in Ghana. In 1988, she proceeded on scholarship to the United World college and obtained an International Baccalaureate Diploma. Then, she got a Bachelor in science of engineering in 1992, a master of sciences of engineering in 1993 and a PhD in bioengineering from the university of Pennsylvania University in the USA in 1998. She then pursued with a postdoctorate program at Rutgers University and served as founding director of the cell biology, laboratory at the New Jersey center for biomaterials. In 2001, she joined the university of Ghana.

A career dedicated to sciences

In 2001,she started her teaching career at the University of Ghana, firstly as a lecturer for undergraduate courses in the department of physics. She also taught at the dental school and the department of physiotherapy. She became the first woman to be appointed full-time teacher in the department of physics.

In 2006, she was appointed as the first head of the department of biomedical engineering and held that position for several years. As the head of the department, she was dedicated , among other things, to student welfare, high quality academic work as well as the growth and visibility of the Department.

As a researcher and teacher, Elsie focuses her work on tissue engineering, biomaterials, design of scaffolds for tissue engineering applications and the application of biomedical engineering concepts to solve problems in the Ghanaian context.

Recently she was appointed as the Dean of the School of sciences of engineering, the first woman to hold that position. She will take office in August 2022.

Promoting STEM in Ghana

The scientist is very involved in promoting STEM (Science Technology Engineering Mathematics) education in Ghana.She has been the Host and Quiz Mistress of the Ghana National Science and Maths quizz TV Programme since 2006. A competition for senior high schools created in 1993 aiming at promoting maths and sciences among students in Ghana.

In addition, she is a member of the Scientific programmes committee of the Next Einstein Forum. She is also a member of the Ghana National Committee of the United World Colleges.

As a reward of her hard work and achievement, she has received a number of prestigious local and international awards. In 2017, she became the Impact Africa Summit Laureate for Education in Ghana, for her contribution to science education in Ghana and for being a role model and inspiration to many young girls.

She spent the whole of 2021 as a visiting scholar and founding head of the newly-established Department of Orthotics and Prosthetics at University of Health and Allied Sciences. She is also the current president of the Ghana society of biomedical engineers.

 In 2021, she was the STEM Personality of the year at the Women’s choice Awards and Exceptional women in Academia for the instinct women Awards. The same year, she was also recognized as an Innovation Ecosystem game changer for the advancement of STEM during the Ghana digital week.

In 2019, she was Glitz Africa’s Honouree for Excellence in Education and the recipient of the Feminine Ghana Achievement Award for Education (General) in 2020.