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The Steelcase Active Learning Center will officially open at West Virginia University, Thursday, October 31, 3 p.m. in the Health and Education building, Evansdale campus. The center was funded by Steelcase Education and is valued at $67,000.

According to the College of Physical Activity and Sport Sciences’ faculty, it ideally suits courses that emphasize collaborating and cooperative learning approaches. “The overarching goal here remains our increased capacity to engage students more actively in their own learning and to move toward interactive pedagogical approaches that better serve today’s learners,” Sean Bulger, professor, physical education and kinesiology, and associate dean for graduate and online education said.

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.

Dana Brooks knew he wanted a career teaching and inspiring others even as a youth growing up in Hagerstown, MD. He was a consummate team player. And he has the trophies and awards to prove it, stacked high on his shelves. He was never focused on the scoring or winning, but on supporting his team. “I was a passer. I defended. The team scored for you. I’m all about the team,” Brooks says.

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!

“Working for WVU has always given me a sense of pride that has resonated deep within me. The opportunities and benefits that I have received at WVU have been outstanding. I am grateful to the many people at WVU who have helped and guided me. It is through the teaching of my parents that I learned the values displayed on the coin. It is because of my WVU family that I have been able to grow these same values. I especially want to thank Dean Brooks for his encouragement, support and guidance and especially for the honor of being selected to receive the WVU Values Coin this year.”

Assistant Professor, Sport, Exercise and Performance Psychology

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.

Sam Zizzi, Pat Fehl Endowed Professor, Sport and Exercise Psychology, was a finalist for the WVU 2019 Outstanding Graduate Research Mentoring Award. Here’s part of what he shared with the nominating committee:

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.

Taliaferro holds a joint appointment CPASS and the Davis College of Agriculture, Natural Resources and Design. She directs the Friday Adapted Physical Education Practicum program, a partnership with Monongalia County Public Schools that provides weekly physical activity programming for nearly 100 children with disabilities while also providing hands-on experience for WVU students. She has also contributed to local, county and statewide initiatives, including McDowell CHOICES and the partnership between the National Inclusion Project and Lifetime Activities programs.

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.

CPASS master’s student and instructor Marla Gladstone plans to analyze opposing factors and how they have influenced history and sport by bringing real-life experience into the classroom.

The idea behind PET 101: Games in American culture course is to evaluate and discover how sport has influenced history and how history has influenced sport. Instead of taking stories and examples straight from a textbook, Gladstone’s desired plan of action is to bring different guest speakers into the classroom, to give a more biographical, human perspective.

As the West Virginia University Mountaineer football team opened their 2019-2020 season on August 31 against FCS powerhouse James Madison, fans could feel the excitement in the air. However, even before kick-off, fans were treated to Gold and Blue-style entertainment, with a focus on family fun.

The College of Physical Activity and Sport Sciences partnered with WVU Athletics and USA Football to host Youth Sports and Spirit Day during pre-game activities held at the Caperton Indoor Facility, 11 a.m.-1 p.m. The festivities took place during the Chick-fil-A Kids Zone event and were organized by Kristen Dieffenbach, athletic coaching education associate professor, with the help of graduate assistants Christina Villalon and Maggie Roberts. They estimate that 150-200 kids took part in event’s first year.