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As the Mountaineer community eagerly prepares to recognize the achievements of West Virginia University December and August 2021 graduates, the College of Physical Activity and Sport Sciences will honor the first cohort of Health and Well-being students to earn their degrees. 

“Working with Health and Well-being students is such a great experience. The students have a wide range of career interests within Health and Well-being professions. We have had the privilege to work with each student to help them reach their individual goals,” Colton Metzger, student success coordinator, said.

A virtual, collaborative learning experience for College of Physical Activity and Sport Sciences students with students from Halmstad University in Halmstad, Sweden, has thrived during the pandemic.

In fall 2020, WVU sport and exercise psychology students worked with their peers at Halmstad University as part of the SEP 272 course, Psychological Aspects of Sport. Students collaborated on cross-cultural aspects of a sport psychology discussion that promoted deeper cultural understanding.

Eight sport management students and three faculty members attended the Pittsburgh Pirates Third annual Curt Roberts Step Up to the Plate recruitment event at PNC Park on Oct. 13.

Students Madison Reeser, Ariana Burke, Joseph Yanchak, Morgan Montgomery, Arielle Friedman, Zorin Istvan, Jalen Thornton and Hanna Rosenberger attended the event with Patrick Hairston, Justin Wartella, and Gary Lhotsky, all teaching associate professors.

As we move through the fall 2021 semester, our Office of Student Success continues to work diligently to create a transformational advising system that shepherds students in their educational journey and empowers them to learn, grow and develop as individuals and future professionals. Our team frequently connects with students to help them engage with the support systems that are designed to maximize the student experience. The team also partners with instructors to encourage reporting student challenges, prompting effective outcomes and enhancing academic success rates.

Our newest major, health and well-being, admitted its second class of students in August. It has been more popular than anticipated and enrolled more than 340 students in just two years. Students who desire to enter professional programs in healthcare, such as nursing, physical therapy, athletic training, occupational therapy and chiropractic, enter the Bachelor of Science track and take additional math and science courses. Students who wish to work in non-school based health-related organizations, such as hospitals and community centers, enter the Bachelor of Arts track.

A vision of boundless opportunities within the sports industry has inspired a sport management master’s program student at the College to create an organization to support student networking and career objectives.

Lauren Burchfield, a sport management master’s program major with emphasis in comprehensive sport industry management, says she formed the Sports Leadership and Development Association for graduate students and other individuals with a keen interest in establishing a solid career pathway.

The College welcomed May, August and December 2020 graduates to participate with May 2021 graduates after more than a year of pandemic restrictions. CPASS celebrated this milestone and the return to the in-person commencement tradition. The ceremonies took place Saturday morning on May 15 and included Benjamin M. Statler College of Engineering and Mineral Resources, Davis College of Agriculture, Natural Resources and Design and Reed College of Media students.

“As you turn your focus to the future, I want you to know that few of us achieve meaningful successes without effort, hard work, a growth mindset, and yes, even failures. If we approach life with the right mindset, these challenges can be some of our most important learning and growth experiences,” Jack Watson, CPASS dean said.

An online master’s student is building her business knowledge through networking and faculty expertise, all while developing her career as an assistant women’s soccer coach.

Sarah Ghaffoor states that the Sport Management Online Master’s Program supports her career pathway by connecting coursework to functional situations. “CPASS has helped me develop in my current position while looking to my future goals,” said Ghaffoor, who has combined an emphasis on comprehensive sports industry management with her major (she’s projected to graduate December 2021).

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.

The College of Physical Activity and Sport Sciences celebrated faculty, staff and student achievements at their 2020-2021 Awards Ceremony held in the spring semester.

Each year, the College recognizes the many faculty who excel in service, research and teaching. Peter Giacobbi received the Researcher of the Year Award; Andrea Taliaferro earned the Professional Servant of the Year Award; Valerie Wayda received the Outstanding Teacher of the Year Award and Emily Murphy was honored with the Grantsperson of the Year Award. Eloise Elliott received the 2021 Heebink Award for Extended Service while Andrea Taliaferro received the James and Karen Caveney Alumni Association Faculty Excellence Award.