Dr. Nicole M. LaVoi, teaching faculty in the School of Kinesiology and associate director of the Tucker Center, will give a keynote at the Alliance of Women Coaches (AWC) Huddle in Boston, Mass., on Thursday, June 13. Her keynote, “Out with Burnout,” will address how coaches can help stave off burnout and stay fully engaged in their coaching careers.
The Huddle is the premiere event for female coaches in the United States. LaVoi serves on the National Advisory Board for the AWC.
Dengel interviewed by KSTP on concussion research
Associate professor of kinesiology Dr. Donald Dengel was recently interviewed by KSTP on his current concussion research. The segment, “U of M Researchers Look for Brain Changes After Concussions,” was aired on June 10 and features research being conducted with a $100,000 NFL Charities grant.
Dengel and his team are looking at effects of multiple sports-related concussions on neurocognition and cerebral vascular function. One of the aims of the research is determining if a concussion has fully healed or if more treatment or rest is necessary.
Lewis emphasizes making physical activity part of daily routine in AHC blog
Dr. Beth Lewis, associate professor in the School of Kinesiology, was recently quoted in Health Talk, a blog from the University of Minnesota Academic Health Center (AHC). The blog entry, “Twin Cities: Fittest cities in the USA,” discussed the implications of Minneapolis-St. Paul being named the fittest city in the U.S.
Lewis’ research focuses on various motivational strategies to make physical activity a part of everyday life. In the blog, Lewis stresses the importance of routine. “It doesn’t have to be going to the gym,” she said. “But, it should be added to the calendar like any other appointment. “
Gao presents at ACSM annual meeting
Dr. Zan Gao, assistant professor in the School of Kinesiology, presented two research projects at the American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM) 60th Annual Meeting and 4th World Congress on Exercise is Medicine in Indianapolis, Ind., May 28 – June 1.
Gao’s first presentation was titled, “Using the Transtheoretical Model to examine the effects of exergaming on physical activity among children.” This project was presented with associate professor in the School of Kinesiology Dr. Beth Lewis, and Dr. Maria Kosma from Louisiana State University (LSU). His second project compared physical activity levels in young children during physical education, recess, and exergaming. In addition, Dr. Gao co-presented another project titled, “The influence of health-related physical fitness model on children’s physical activity levels and motivation,” with his graduate student You Fu.
Konczak publishes position paper in neuroscience journal
Jürgen Konczak, Ph.D., professor of kinesiology and director of the Human Sensorimotor Control Laboratory, published a position paper on the treatment of musician’s dystonia with Giovanni Abbruzzese, an Italian neurologist. The article titled, “Focal dystonia in musicians: Linking motor symptoms to somatosensory dysfunction,” will appear in Frontiers in Human Neuroscience, a first-tier electronic journal.
The article describes musician’s dystonia, a peculiar motor disorder only seen in musicians. It consists of involuntary sustained muscle contractions that interfere with the voluntary motor control during the play of a musical instrument while other movements of the same motor system remain intact.
Marlatt awarded a Predoctoral Fellowship from the American Heart Association
Kinesiology doctoral student Kara Marlatt has been awarded a Predoctoral Fellowship for the 2013-2015 academic years from the American Heart Association. The American Heart Association awards fellowships to help doctoral students initiate their career in cardiovascular function and stroke research by providing research assistance and training.
Marlatt’s research project is titled, “Effects of Statin Therapy on Arterial Stiffness in Young Adult Survivors of Childhood Cancer.” Her advisors are Dr. Donald Dengel from the School of Kinesiology, and Dr. Aaron Kelly from the Department of Pediatrics in the Division of Epidemiology and Clinical Research.
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Wheatley presents at American College of Sports Medicine
Dr. Courtney Wheatley presented an abstract entitled, “Comparison of the Effects of Varying Exercise Intensities vs. Albuterol on Pulmonary Function in Patients with Cystic Fibrosis,” at the American College of Sports Medicine 2013 Annual Meeting in Indianapolis, IN.
Wheatley, C.M., Morgan, M.A., Baker, S.E., Wong, E.C., Martinez, M.G., Morgan, W.J., Snyder, E.M. Comparison of the Effects of Varying Exercise Intensities vs. Albuterol on Pulmonary Function in Patients with Cystic Fibrosis. American College of Sports Medicine Annual Meeting, Indianapolis, Indiana, 2013.
Gao publishes research on “Dance Dance Revolution”
Dr. Zan Gao, assistant professor in the School of Kinesiology, published a research article on exergaming titled, “Associations between students’ situational interest, mastery experiences, and physical activity levels in an interactive dance game.” This article was published in Psychology, Health and Medicine, with lead author Chaoqun Huang, Ph.D., an assistant professor at Wayland Baptist University.
The purpose of this study was to examine the influence of previous experiences on students’ situational interest and physical activity levels, as well as the relationships between situational interest and physical activity levels in Dance Dance Revolution. The findings suggested that students would have higher physical activity levels if the activity provides new information.
Graduate students win research awards from local American College of Sports Medicine chapter
Doctoral students Ana Bellard Freire Ribeiro and Greg Rhodes recently placed first and second, respectively, in the Northland Chapter of the American College of Sports Medicine’s 2013 Graduate Student Research Awards.
Riberio’s research, conducted with professor of kinesiology Jürgen Konczak, Ph.D., and St. Cloud State’s Glenn Street, Ph.D., was titled, “Comparison of Tibial Strength Between Adult Female Dancers and Gymnasts.” Rhodes’ project, “Physiology Testing vs. Field Based Strength Testing in Roller Ski Race Performance in Elite Junior Cross-Country Skiers,” was advised by kinesiology lecturer Stacy Ingraham, Ph.D.
Weiss gives invited presentations at UCLA
Maureen Weiss, professor of kinesiology, recently gave an invited lecture and participated in a research seminar with faculty and students in the Department of Psychology at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). The presentation titled, “Sport as a social context for promoting youth development,” was the focus of the developmental psychology scholarly lecture series and invoked interest from individuals pursuing research on and outreach with after-school programming.
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Wade publishes new textbook
Professor Michael Wade, Ph.D., has published a new text book with co-author Dr. David Sugden of the University of Leeds (UK). The book is titled, Typical and Atypical Motor Development, and provides explanations for motor development with contrastive theoretical, empirical, and experiential view points. They describe motor development from birth to early adulthood and how impactful different resources may be for a young developing person.
KIN student Alena Brooks training for 2016 Summer Olympics
Alena Brooks, an exceptional women’s track and field athlete, received her B.S. in kinesiology this month and was admitted to the School of Kinesiology graduate program. She will be an M.Ed. student in the sport and exercise emphasis area beginning Fall 2013. Even though her collegiate career has ended, Brooks continues to run as she aspires to qualify for the 2016 Summer Olympics.
The Minnesota Daily reflected on her life and athletic career in, “Trinidad star excels on track.” Her competitive athletic career was described throughout the article highlighting all of her achievements. She earned the following distinctions:
- Second-team All-Big Ten honors in the 600-meter run and the distance medley relay her freshman year
- Placed third at the Big Ten indoor track championships in the 400-meter run as a sophomore
- Qualifed for an NCAA regional in two events her junior year
- Placed fifth in the 600-meter run at the Big Ten indoor championships and won the 400-meter run at the Arkansas Invitational as a senior
The school is excited to welcome back Brooks in the Fall as she continues her education and attempts to fulfill her Olympic dreams.
Wiese-Bjornstal gives invited talk at sports medicine conference
Dr. Diane Wiese-Bjornstal, associate professor of kinesiology, gave an invited talk on the “Psychological Aspects of Returning to Sport Following Injury” at the Current Concepts in Sports Medicine spring conference sponsored by Fairview Sports and Orthopedic Care, held in Edina, Minn., on May 18, 2013. This year’s conference had national and regional experts come together to discuss and lecture on injuries of the overhead athlete.
Alumna Azizah Jor’dan to attend the Summer Institute on Aging Research
School of Kinesiology alumna Azizah Jor’dan, Ph.D., has been selected to participate in the prestigious National Institute on Aging (NIA) Summer Institute on Aging Research, to be held July 14-19 on the National Institutes of Health Campus in Bethesda, Maryland. The program includes lectures, seminars, and small group discussions related to aging. Jor’dan is one of only 32 participants selected among a group of outstanding applicants. She is currently a post-doctoral fellow in gerontology at Harvard Medical School.
Jor’dan graduated from the School of Kinesiology in 2012 and was an advisee of professor Michael Wade.
Wiese-Bjornstal featured on KARE 11
Diane Wiese-Bjornstal, Ph.D., associate professor of kinesiology, appeared in a KARE 11 segment on Thursday, May 16, answering viewers’ questions about youth sports. Wiese-Bjornstal. The video from the broadcast is available online here.
Three students win Student Awards from the American Kinesiology Association
Three students in the School of Kinesiology have been awarded an American Kinesiology Association (AKA) Student Award for 2013. Molly Watkins, who will graduate Summa Cum Laude this spring with a B.S. in Kinesiology, was presented with an Undergraduate Scholar Award. Scott Brown, who will graduate this spring with a Ph.D.in kinesiology, with an emphasis in exercise physiology, was awarded the Graduate Scholar Award. Vicki Schull, doctoral candidate in kinesiology, sport management emphasis, received the Writing Award. The students are advised by Ms. Susan Stirling, Dr. Lisa Kihl, and Dr. Stacy Ingraham, respectively.
AKA is the national organization that promotes and enhances kinesiology as a unified field of study and advances its many applications. These awards are intended to recognize and promote academic excellence, to further the professional competence and dedication of academically accomplished graduate students, and to promote kinesiology and its related fields.
LaVoi participates in Huff Post Live panel
Dr. Nicole M. LaVoi, teaching faculty in the School of Kinesiology and associate director of the Tucker Center, discussed the lack of female athletes in sport media on Huff Post Live this week. LaVoi was joined on the program by Dr. David Leonard (Professor of Culture, Gender & Race at Washington State University) and Tara Conley (Founder of Media Make Change; Ph.D Student at the Teacher’s College of Columbia University).
Stoffregen and colleagues to be published in PLOS ONE
Thomas A. Stoffregen, Ph.D., director of the Affordance Perception-Action Laboratory and professor of kinesiology, along with four colleagues, have had an article, “Getting Your Sea Legs,” accepted for publication in PLOS ONE, an international, peer-reviewed, open-access, online publication that features reports of original research from all disciplines within science and medicine.
The article reports research conducted at the beginning of the Spring 2012 voyage of Semester at Sea, and was conducted on board the M/V Explorer as it travelled from the Bahamas to the Commonwealth of Dominica. The research team conducted the first controlled experiments relating body sway to the processes by which novice mariners “get their sea legs.”
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Konczak to serve on interdisciplinary faculty advisory committee
Jürgen Konczak, Ph.D., professor of kinesiology and director of the Human Sensorimotor Control Laboratory, was recently invited by the Dean of the Graduate School, Henning Schroeder, to serve on the University’s Interdisciplinary Faculty Advisory Committee. This group will report to the Dean of the Graduate School and the Provost’s Interdisciplinary Team. It is part of the wider effort by the university to improve and promote interdisciplinary graduate education across academic units within the University.
Konczak will also serve as the School of Kinesiology’s Director of Graduate Studies, starting in the fall, and already directs the interdisciplinary graduate minor in Clinical Physiology and Movement Science.
Undergraduates tour the campus with Breck Middle School students
Undergraduate exchange students Yi Sun and Lu Huang from Beijing Sport University led a group of middle school students around campus on May 3. Twenty Breck Middle School students visited the School of Kinesiology with their teachers as part of a the China at the U scavenger hunt. Rayla Allison, J.D., associate director and lecturer in the School of Kinesiology, met with the students to explain what kinesiology means, the types of majors offered (KIN, RPLS, SMGT), and careers within kinesiology.
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