Q&A: Meet Professor Alex Schreiber
Meet Your Biology Mentor
Professor of Biology Alex Schreiber blends his passions for physiology, outdoor adventure, and experiential learning to create unforgettable educational experiences for his students. From climbing Mt. Kilimanjaro to studying human physiology under extreme conditions, his courses inspire curiosity and hands-on discovery.
What’s your favorite class to teach, and why?
I love teaching Extreme Physiology and Medicine as part of the First-Year Program. This course explores how geographic exploration has transformed modern medicine and our understanding of how the human body is capable of surviving extreme duress. I like teaching this class because it gives me an excuse to talk about my two favorite topics: physiology and outdoor travel. I travel to East Africa every year with SLU students and students from Kenya and Tanzania to climb the two tallest mountains in Africa, Mt Kilimanjaro and Mt Kenya, and study how humans acclimatize to high altitude.
How do you make courses engaging?
I prioritize hands-on, experiential learning. In Extreme Physiology and Medicine, students conduct mini-labs like immersing their hands in ice water or hanging upside-down to study how the body responds to stress. When I take students to East Africa to climb Mt. Kilimanjaro and Mt. Kenya, we monitor changes in blood oxygen, heart rate, and sleep physiology at high altitudes. These real-world applications help students form hypotheses and analyze data in meaningful ways.
What do you value most about your students?
The students I teach are creative risk-takers. They are not scared to try something new and learn from their mistakes. Each generation of students learns differently. Because I write books and textbooks about biology for students, I am constantly receiving input from them and revising the way I teach and write. My classes and books are never static, but always evolving.
What’s an innovative course you’ve developed?
Twelve years ago, I developed a unique summer class that I teach every year in East Africa called Kenya Biodiversity Safari. For one month, students study integrative biology in three of East Africa’s most spectacular settings: the lakes of the Great Rift Valley, the savanna grasslands of Laikipia, and the alpine regions of Mount Kenya.
What surprises students most about you?
I was a United States Peace Corps volunteer in Kenya from 1989-1991 teaching high school math and science. I am a member of an organization called the "Kilimanjaro Initiative" where every year I accompany and facilitate yearly ascents of Mt. Kilimanjaro for empowering youth from disenfranchised communities in East Africa and New York City. I ride a BMW R1200C motorcycle with a sidecar and a beagle.
What’s been your proudest moment as a professor?
One of my proudest achievements has been mentoring students from underprivileged or challenging backgrounds who have gone on to attend graduate school and earn Ph.D.s and advanced degrees in medicine, like MDs, nurses, PAs, PTs, and many others.
