Faculty News

During the COVID-19 pandemic, many faculty members of the College of Physical Activity and Sport Sciences were asked to teach more often and in different ways. Despite these increased obligations to our students, faculty maintained a high level of productivity in research.

The College welcomed three new faculty members to campus this fall: Patrick Hairston, sport management teaching assistant professor; Peter McGahey, coaching and performance science teaching assistant professor; and Brent Oja, sport management assistant professor. They will provide a clear vision, specialized expertise and strong industry connections.

The WVU Alumni Association hosted a webinar entitled WVU Check-In on April 21, featuring an insightful conversation with Ware Distinguished Professor Eloise Elliott and Dr. Pat Fehl Endowed Professor Sam Zizzi. Meridith Balas, director of engagement, WVU Alumni Association, hosted the event.

A CPASS faculty member is evaluating ongoing efforts of a mini-grant program that funds projects across the state with an emphasis on obesity and chronic disease prevention and management.

FiT Publishing is the premier publisher in producing books, eBooks, academic journals and digital products in sport management, sport and exercise psychology, physical education, coaching education and sport and cultural studies. FiT Publishing has announced new titles written by current WVU and emeritus faculty.

After more than 40 years of service to WVU and CPASS, Dean Dana Brooks retired on June 30, 2019. A tireless advocate for diversity and for his students, Brooks leaves behind a legacy of innovative leadership and passion for his field — sports education.

West Virginia University celebrates Mountaineer Values through the Values Coin program, which recognizes faculty and staff who help bring the University’s mission to life through their daily work. This past year, CPASS faculty and staff received both Pay It Forward and Mountaineer Values coins. Original CPASS recipients then selected more coworkers to receive Pay It Forward coins. Congratulations to our recipients!

Earlier this year, WVU created the inaugural Outstanding Graduate Research Mentoring Award to honor and encourage the considerable efforts and accomplishments of faculty who have demonstrated exceptional commitment to the mentorship of graduate students. Sponsored by the Office of Graduate Education and Life and the WVU Research Office, the new award recognizes four finalists.

This year, FiT published textbooks on subjects ranging from sport and cultural psychology to foundational sport management. FiT will release updated versions of the fourth edition of “Psychological Bases of Sport Injuries,” the fifth edition of “Media Relations in Sport,” and fourth edition of “Racism in College Athletics,” co-edited by CPASS’s very own former dean, Dana Brooks, in the upcoming year. FiT will also publish new titles on topics such as mindsets for the training of dancers and human resource management within sport and recreation programs.

Andrea Taliaferro, Physical Education Teacher Education associate professor, is one of six West Virginia University faculty members who were recognized with the University’s 2019 Foundation Award for Outstanding Teaching. The award honors exceptional professors who go above and beyond to inspire their students. Each of the honorees received $5,000 in professional development funds from the WVU Foundation.

WVU Football hosted the first annual Professors’ Day at Milan Puskar Stadium on April 11. University faculty, including eight from CPASS, were invited to tour the stadium, spend time on the field and meet the new coaching staff. WVU Athletics started this initiative to thank faculty for their hard work and help in motivating student-athlete success in the classroom.

Multiple outreach projects will have a lasting impact in the Morgantown community and beyond.  A New Jersey high school robotics team has developed a robot that enables kids with special needs in the CPASS Friday Adapted PE program to have greater access to fun physical activities.  A model grant that combines researchers from WVU and three other regional institutions will help community groups to provide health and wellness opportunities for individuals with disabilities. A continuing partnership with the National Inclusion Project expands physical activity environments for a diverse population within WVU Lifetime Activities.  

Killeen Schlegel, program coordinator in the CPASS Office of Student Success, is one of four WVU academic advisers honored with the Nicholas Evans Award for Excellence in Advising. This annual award, established by the Office of the Provost, is given in honor of Dr. Nicholas Evans, a lifelong proponent of the importance of undergraduate advising at WVU. Each year two faculty and two staff are recognized for their work advising and mentoring students.

Following its inception in 2016, staff members in the CPASS Office of Student Success have provided leadership in enrollment management, student retention, program completion and post-college achievement. Lindsay Augustine, interim director of enrollment management, said: “Our team does a fantastic job of maintaining a welcoming and engaging environment, which enables us to serve students effectively as they achieve their academic and professional goals.”

Dana Voelker, Sport and Exercise Psychology assistant professor, joins the ranks of West Virginia University faculty members  selected for the 2018 Foundation Award for Outstanding Teaching, which honors exceptional professors who go the extra mile to inspire their students.

Office Administrator, Dean’s Office, 35 years

Jeremy Yeats, PhD, is a native of Colorado and has been an assistant professor at Adams State University for six years. The past two years, he has served as graduate coordinator for the coaching master’s program. He earned his doctorate in sport and exercise science, with an emphasis in sport pedagogy from the University of Northern Colorado; an MA in educational psychology from the University of Colorado at Denver; and a BA in health and physical education from the University of Hawaii at Hilo. His teaching philosophy centers on a constructivist framework, where learners use their prior knowledge, have learning experiences, construct new meanings, use reflections and start the cycle over again with a new set of prior knowledge. His teaching style reflects a student-centered and culturally-responsive classroom, which helps create an active community of learners.

CPASS sport management graduate and guard for WVU men’s basketball, Jevon Carter, was named Male Athlete of the Year at the 2018 Blue and Golden Globe Awards.

The globalization of sport has never been more evident than it is today, and the cross-cultural reach of sport continues to explode at the recreational, amateur and professional levels. It is the mission of FiT Publishing, the publishing division of the International Center for Performance Excellence (ICPE), to support CPASS’s international educational initiatives by disseminating the most recent research in the sport sciences field — by both national and international scholars — to a global audience in the form of our journals and books.