Multiple College of Physical Activity and Sport Sciences faculty, students and alumni participated in the first hybrid National Association for Kinesiology in Higher Education conference, Jan. 5-8, 2022 in Phoenix, Ariz. CPASS stakeholders highlighted their expertise through presentations and lectures while receiving recognition for passion in the field.
The 2022 NAKHE conference featured how leaders can effectively use technology and creativity in meeting the challenges resulting from the pandemic and other ongoing national issues. COVID-19 has upped the ante for higher education administration and faculty in dealing with difficulties related to budget cuts, diversity, inclusion and legislation.
The conference combined face-to-face with fully virtual presentations. The in person concurrent sessions were made available to virtual attendees via the Whova App. The conference included a live stream of all named lectures and awards for virtual attendees. Conference components comprised the following: Engaging a new generation of students, advocacy practices for funds, best practices in trying times, transforming institutional culture, instructional physical activity programs and coaching education.
CPASS students
Candace Brink
CATS Doctoral Student, first year
Network opportunities and attended presentations.
Kayla Abrahamson
CATS Doctoral Student, second year
Awarded the Joanna Davenport Graduate Student Poster award.
CPASS faculty
Dr. Erin Jordan
HWB Program Coordinator and Teaching Assistant Professor
Presented – Meeting the Needs of Today’s Students: Using Open Educational Resources to Improve Resources to Improve Student Access to Course Material and Improve Overall Learning.
“At NAKHE I had the opportunity to present on the work I have been doing to restructure a course I teach using Open Educational Resources instead of a traditional textbook. The idea is to reduce the financial burden on students by saving them money and all students regardless of financial means will have access to course materials on day one of the course.”
Dr. Samantha Ross
Assistant Professor, PETE
Presented – Teaching innovations in the classroom using universal design to learning.
Co-presented a workshop – Evaluation of a course assignment on inclusive physical activity promotion
“At NAKHE I co-led a workshop on an undergraduate course assignment aimed at building cultural competency in physical activity promotion messaging inclusive of people with disabilities. NAKHE offered an exciting opportunity to discuss with other faculty creative approaches for integrating disability education across kinesiology curriculum.”
Dr. Emi Tsuda
Assistant Professor, PETE
Received the Outstanding Reviewer of Year for the International Journal of Kinesiology in Higher Education (IJKHE) award
Dr. Valerie Wayda
Associate Professor, Associate Dean for Undergraduate and Academic Affairs and ACE Program Coordinator
Presented – Experiences from the NAKHE Leader Mentor Program: Athens State University and West Virginia University.
“Jamie Gilbert and I co-presented on our experiences as participants in the NAKHE leadership mentoring program (LMP). The LMP is designed to bring together members of the kinesiology community for a one-week “shadow” experience to build future leaders through hands-on mentoring and real-world scenarios. The desired outcome is an increased level of awareness and understanding of the position and the job requirements of a kinesiology administrator on the part of the mentee.”
WVU alumni
Dr. Kacey DiGiacinto
CPASS PhD in Kinesiology, PETE, 2010
Elizabeth City State University, Associate Professor in Physical Education and Health
Recognized for her contributions in delivering NAKHE’s first hybrid conference.
“I was the NAKHE vice president this year. The vice president is tasked with the duties of conference planning, organization, and management. I spent calendar year 2021 working to create NAKHE’s first hybrid conference. I was responsible to coordinating the face-to-face event in Phoenix, AZ and online presentations and live streaming. I had a lot of friends and colleagues from across the country volunteer to help make the conference a great event for the attendees. All participants have access to the recorded content, handouts and Whova app networking functions until April 8, 2022. The importance of my efforts enabled NAKHE to continue to provide quality professional development, networking, and membership recognition of the amazing work our members engage in to advance the field of Kinesiology and its’ subdisciplines at a national and international level during a spike in the Omicron variant of the COVID-19 pandemic.”
Dr. Beth Hersman
CPASS BS in Health and Physical Education, 2002, and MS in PETE, 2003
Wright State University, Professor in Adapted Physical Education
Recognized for her contributions as editor of International Journal of Kinesiology in Higher Education. Her three-year term has ended, and she has stepped down as editor this year.
“The International Journal of Kinesiology in Higher Education was a new journal when I took over; there was one editor before me. As editor, I added an editorial review board and created a reviewer database, which has helped to streamline the review process. This journal has targeted young professionals as well as graduate student submissions to give them an opportunity to publish in a peer reviewed journal but accepts papers from any level professional. We are always looking for reviewers and new submissions that relate to kinesiology in higher education.”
Dr. Jamie Gilbert Mikell
CPASS PhD in Kinesiology Coaching and Teaching Studies, 2019
Athens State University, Assistant Professor, Health and Physical Education
Recipient of the Leadership Mentor Grant from NAKHE
Lead the following presentations: Experiences from the NAKHE Leader Mentor Program; Athens State University and West Virginia University.
“The leadership mentor program brings members of the kinesiology community together for a one-week shadow experience to build future leaders through hands-on mentoring and real-world scenarios. The program is also designed to build networking and social communication between university kinesiology departments from different locations inside and outside of the United States. As a result, I am in the process of implementing a certificate in sport coaching geared toward coaching the interscholastic athlete for degree seeking and non-degree seeking students at Athens State University.”
Dr. Luciana Zuest
CPASS PhD in Kinesiology Coaching and Teaching Studies, 2014
Towson University, Associate Professor, Department of Kinesiology
Delivered the 31st Delphine Hanna Lecture at NAKHE to celebrate the first woman to become a professor of physical education in the U.S.
“It was wonderful to attend a conference in person and connect with amazing colleagues.”
Dr. William Davis
CPASS PhD in Kinesiology Coaching and Teaching Studies
Athens State University, Assistant Professor of Health and Physical Education
Presented at the event.
Dr. Paula Parker
CPASS EdD in Sport and Exercise Psychology, 2005
Campbell University, Associate Professor, Exercise Science
Presented at the event.