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What do sport and exercise sciences have in common with chemical engineering? Probably not much. But the distant relationship between these two academic fields was not an obstacle for faculty and students from West Virginia University’s College of Physical Activity and Sport Sciences and the Department of Chemical and Biomedical Engineering in the Benjamin M. Statler College of Engineering and Mineral Resources. The groups joined forces with their counterpart programs at Universidade Federal do Parana in Brazil to create a one-day virtual workshop in April 2021 that gathered more than 140 participants.

The partnership originated in fall 2017 when WVU signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Universidade Federal do Parana. It was championed by CPASS in collaboration with the School of Physical Education at UFPR and was the result of several years of research and faculty exchanges. The MOU looks to act at the university level, not just the departmental level, so the collaboration was expanded in 2018 to include the Department of Chemical Engineering in the Statler College, which also partnered with its equivalent department at UFPR.

After 25 years of steadfast service to the College of Physical Activity and Sport Sciences and West Virginia University, Barbara Dalton, director of the International Center for Performance Excellence and Fitness Information Technology Publishing, has retired.

“Barb Dalton deserves a great deal of thanks for her dedicated service to FiT Publishing and CPASS. During her 13 years working with FiT, her performance was so strong that she kept moving up the ladder until she was named the director in December 2015,” Jack Watson, CPASS dean said.

FiT Publishing has experienced some changes: Barbara Dalton retired as director in May 2021. She has had 25 years of service with West Virginia University, the last 13 with the College of Physical Activity and Sport Sciences and six of those years as director of FiT.

Former managing editor Eileen Harvey has moved into the director position while Kassi Roberts has assumed the managing editor role. FiT continues to pursue academic standards in publishing and strategic improvements set in motion by Barbara that Eileen is now striving to accomplish.

Numerous new and existing collaborations will advance the College's presence in teaching, research and service related projects. Highlights include expanding undergraduate student experiential learning and increasing physical activity and wellness in West Virginia. Various funding arrangements will provide in depth look at the coach-athlete relationship, continuation of strength and conditioning positions in the area, establishing counseling training opportunities and enhancing an ongoing partnership to help grow community hockey participation. 

Suncrest Early Learning Center, Emi Tsuda, assistant professor, Physical Education and Kinesiology. Physical Education and Kinesiology students in PET 350 Primary Physical Education course will visit Suncrest Early Learning Center and teach physical education to PreK children. The course meets twice a week for 15 weeks in the fall 2021 semester. Undergraduate students will plan a lesson and faculty will provide supervision of their planning, teaching and reflection.

Three College alumni — Kalista Gioglio, Ashley Hartert and Jackie Riggleman —discussed their time at West Virginia University and how it helped prepare them for careers in leadership roles. They shared stories about a typical day at the “office” and the people and places that helped them succeed.

Each of these expert alumni offered advice for students wanting to enter their field. They expressed the importance of finding internship opportunities, as they greatly valued the experiences they had and connections made during their time as Mountaineers.

On Wednesdays at 3:30 p.m. athletic coaching education seniors Charles Teeter and John Craig wait to greet their student athletes for a soccer practice session over Zoom. They revisit soccer drills taught from the past week, demonstrate new ones through PowerPoints and YouTube clips and oversee drills that student-athletes perform with their families so they can practice during the week on their own. This virtual approach has allowed ACE 488 students to maintain their connection with the community during the pandemic.

Through the 2021 spring semester, the College of Physical Activity and Sport Sciences Adapted Physical Activity practicum invited children and adults with disabilities to join weekly virtual instruction.

West Virginia University women's sports visionary Martha Thorn, 83, coach of the WVU women's tennis team from 1973 to 2000, passed away in April 2021.

She was responsible for starting the WVU women's tennis program one year after the Title IX legislation was enacted in 1972.

In fall 2021, a newly funded project kicked off to promote wellness within the West Virginia University community through adapted sport. Mountaineers on the Move will incorporate wheelchairs into physical activity courses, allowing the WVU community to learn and participate in an inclusive environment.  

Andrea Taliaferro, associate professor, said the two-year project, funded through the WVU Office of Health and Promotion and Wellness, is focused on preparing current and future physical activity professionals regarding inclusive beliefs.

Mike Fox is one of seven Mountaineer student-athletes who was inducted into the West Virginia University Sports Hall of Fame last fall. Fox earned his bachelor’s degree in physical education from the College of Physical Activity and Sport Sciences in 1990.

The Akron, Ohio, native came to Morgantown skinny and unsure of himself. Five years later, he left as one of the most coveted interior defensive linemen in the country. He built himself into the player he became the old-fashioned way – by working hard and eating a lot.

Floyd Jones retired from the College of Physical Activity and Sport Sciences on May 13, 2021, following 32 years of service to West Virginia University. Jones served as a sport management associate professor and taught both undergraduate and graduate students.

“I would like to thank Dr. Floyd Jones for his many years of service to the College. As a native West Virginian, he was always committed to the land-grant mission of the University. Throughout his time in CPASS, Dr. Jones has had a strong impact upon the College, our Sport Management Program and the many thousands of students with whom he has worked over the years. We will miss seeing Dr. Jones and hearing his passionate words and laughter echoing around the building. We wish him all the best in his retirement,” Jack Watson, dean, said.

Four sport and exercise psychology alumni continue to make a significant impact within the American Psychological Association Division 47, Society for Sport, Exercise and Performance Psychology. Megan Byrd, Brandonn Harris, Jamie Shapiro and Amanda J. Visek are adding their vision to the national organization through research, teaching and service. 

In their new leadership roles, they hope to increase student involvement, expand diversity, equity and inclusion, collaboration efforts, focus on ethical practices and enhance mentoring opportunities. Below they reflect on their experiences as graduate students in the College and offer their support and guidance for current SEP majors.

The WVU College of Physical Activity and Sport Sciences honored four graduates and named its Outstanding Alumnus and Distinguished Service award recipients during its 2020 Hall of Fame Ceremony, October 16 via a virtual ceremony on Zoom. The 2020 Hall of Fame inductees are Christopher D. Lantz, Gary J. Quinn, James L. Taylor and Keli M. Zinn. The College honored P. Kevin Elko with the Outstanding Alumnus and Dallas D. Branch, Jr. with the Distinguished Service Awards. Visit the CPASS Hall of Fame website to view full bios for this 32nd class of CPASS Hall of Fame inductees.  

Notable past CPASS inductees include Linda Carson, Judith Hayes, Chuck Howley, Rodney C. “Hot Rod” Hundley, Rodney K. Thorn, Alfred F. Ware, Robert L. DeProspero, Fred Schaus, George J. Esper, General Earl E. Anderson, Jerry West and Robert Sam Huff, all members of the WVU Academy of Distinguished Alumni. 

West Virginia University continues to recognize employees who embrace our values and purpose while underlining our land-grant mission. The WVU Values Coin program kicked off in 2017 in celebration of WVU’s 150th birthday. The number of WVU Values Coin awards continues to grow through the ‘pay it forward’ program, which allows prior coin recipients to recognize coworkers for their exceptional efforts. 

The College of Physical Activity and Sport Sciences welcomes Kimberly Straight as the new accounting and operations coordinator for FiT Publishing.

Straight, who started on Nov. 15, has long been a member of Mountaineer family, most recently having worked with Shared Services, and previously Extension Services and the John Chambers College of Business and Economics. In her new role at FiT, she will coordinate accounts payable and procurement, business operations and communications, customer service, and will oversee student workers.

On a gray, cold and damp fall afternoon, students from the College of Physical Activity and Sport Sciences sport management program and the Eberly College of Arts and Sciences World Languages, Literature and Linguistics department met to play in the Friendship Cup, two friendly soccer matches in a one-day event.

Eberly College professor Lisa Di Bartolomeo, Russian, Slavic and East European Studies coordinator with the WLLL department, contacted Gonzalo Bravo, CPASS associate professor, sport management, to suggest that the programs host an event for the students. “It’s been almost 20 months since the COVID 19 pandemic erupted. Many of the extracurricular activities students have been involved in the past had been temporarily suspended or significantly changed,” Di Bartolomeo said.