Members of Kinesiology's Affordance Perception-Action Laboratory (APAL) attended the Progress in Motor Control VIII conference, July 20-23, in Cincinnati. Those in attendance were PhD students Azizah Jor'dan, Sam Haag, Fu-Chen Chen, Yi-Chou Chen, and Yawen Yu; and Kinesiology movement science professors Tom Stoffregen and Michael Wade. Each of the attendees presented at least one poster, which are listed below:

Samuel Haag & Michael G. Wade. Changes in postural motion and heart rate responses in a gold putting competition

Azizah Jor'dan, Thomas A. Stoffregen, J. Riley Mccarten, & Michael G. Wade. Assessment of movement skills and perceptual judgment in older adults

Fu-Chen Chen & Thomas A. Stoffregen. Postural facilitation of a precision task at sea

Fu-Chen Chen, Michael G. Wade, Chia-Liang Tsai, & Thomas A. Stoffregen. Postural Responses to suprapostural tasks in children with and without Developmental Coordination Disorder

Ken Yoshida & Thomas A. Stoffregen. Manual wielding and the dynamics of liquids

Yi-Chou Chen, Mitch Pajcic, Anthony M. Mayo, & Thomas A. Stoffregen. Visual vigilance tasks influence stance width

Yi-Chou Chen, Jason Dong, Jens Hagstrom & Thomas A. Stoffregen. Control of a virtual avatar influences postural activity and motion sickness

Yawen Yu, Hyun-Chae Chung, Lauren A. Hemingway, & Thomas A. Stoffregen. Postural sway and visual performance in women with and without morning sickness in pregnancy

Anthony M. Mayo, Michael G. Wade, & Thomas A. Stoffregen. Postural effects of the horizon on land and at sea

Posted by Marta Fahrenz at 3:16 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Lesley Scibora, recent Ph.D. graduate in Kinesiology, has been awarded a postdoctoral fellowship for 2011-2012. Dr. Scibora will be working in collaboration with faculty and graduate students in three Kinesiology exercise science laboratories: Laboratory for Musculoskeletal Health, Laboratory of Physiological Hygiene and Exercise Science, and Human and Sport Performance Laboratory. A significant part of her assignment will be to conduct research with and for colleagues in the U of M Medical School on a number of NIH grants. She will also teach Kinesiology classes in the exercise science area.

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Congratulations to Ms. Ayanna Franklin, Kinesiology Ph.D. student in Sport Psychology, who has been awarded the Dorothy McNeill Tucker Fellowship for 2011-2012. The Dorothy McNeill Tucker Fellowship Fund provides graduate fellowships for students working with the Tucker Center for Research on Girls & Women in Sport. Ms. Franklin's research interests focus on the psychological responses of athletes to sport injury, and her doctoral dissertation will examine the role of personality in athletes' sport injury responses and rehabilitation adherence. She is advised by Prof. Diane Wiese-Bjornstal.

Ms. Franklin said, "The Fellowship gives me the opportunity to attend conferences and be involved with professional organizations that otherwise would not have been available to me. Dr. Tucker has accomplished great feats on behalf of women, sports, and education and her accomplishments have been an inspiration to many. I am hopeful that I can be an inspiration to young scholars just as I have been inspired by others."

Tucker Center Director Professor Mary Jo Kane added, "We are grateful for the ongoing support of Dr. Tucker. Because of her commitment and generosity, students like Ms. Franklin will have the financial support they need to conduct first-rate scholarship that will truly make a difference."

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Yawen Yu, a Kinesiology doctoral candidate in the Affordance Perception-Action Laboratory (APAL), has been awarded a scholarship from the organizers of Progress in Motor Control VIII, which will enable her to attend the conference to present a poster. The conference will be held in Cincinnati July 21-23 2011.  Lauren Hemingway, a co-author on the poster, is a UROP scholar in APAL.  Dr. Hyun-Chae Chung, also a co-author, is an APAL Visiting Scholar for 2010-2011 from Kunsan National University, Korea.

Yu, Y., Hemingway, L., Chung, H.-C., & Stoffregen, T. A. (2011, July). Postural sway and visual performance in women with and without morning sickness in pregnancy.  Poster presented at Progress in Motor Control VIII, Cincinnati.

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Fu-Chen (Kidd) Chen, a 2011 Kinesiology PhD graduate, along with Kinesiology professors Dr. Michael Wade, Dr. Tom Stoffregen and Dr. C.L. Tsai (Professor at National Cheng Kung University, Taiwan) have an article accepted for publication in Developmental Medicine and Child Neurology. The article, "Postural adaptations to a suprapostural memory task among children with and without Developmental Coordination Disorder", completes the publication of Dr. Chen's doctoral dissertation research.

Posted by Austin Stair Calhoun at 9:59 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Candance Doerr-Stevens, Ph.D. candidate in the literacy education program (Curriculum and Instruction), was awarded a 2011-12 Doctoral Dissertation Fellowship by the University of Minnesota Graduate School. These prestigious fellowships are given to select graduate students to allow them to devote full-time effort to their dissertations during their final year of study.

Doerr-Stevens's research examines the use of multiple modes of communication, such as image, sound, music, and motion, as students collaboratively create radio and film documentaries.

Posted by Greg Steinke at 11:13 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Fu-Chen (Kidd) Chen, Kinesiology Ph.D. graduate, has published an article as lead author. Dr. Chen is an advisee of Dr. Michael Wade and Dr. Tom Stoffregen and graduated in May with an emphasis in Motor Learning/Motor Development.

Chen, F.-C., Stoffregen, T. A., & Wade, M. G. (2011). Postural responses to a suprapostural visual task among children with and without Developmental Coordination Disorder. Research in Developmental Disabilities, 32, 1948-1956.

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Three Kinesiology graduate students traveled to Denver, Colorado last week for the American College of Sports Medicine Annual Meeting held May 31-June 4. Justin Geijer, Ph.D., Kara Marlatt, M.S., and Meghan McCue, Ph.D., gave presentations at the conference. All are advised by Dr. Don Dengel.

Mr. Geijer and Ms. Marlatt gave their poster presentations on June 1. Mr. Geijer's was on "Comparison of Bone Density Measures in Adults with Down Syndrome, Intellectual Disability, and Non-Disabled Adults." Ms. Marlatt's thematic poster was on, "Endothelium-Independent Dilation in Children and Adolescents." Ms. McCue presented her poster titled "Evaluation of Endothelium-Independent Dilation Using Peripheral Arterial Tonometry" on June 3.

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Greg Rhodes, Kinesiology PhD, contributed last month to the TRIA Orthopaedic Center blog, Your Cycling, with an entry on physiology testing. To read Greg's discussion of the types of physiology testing to develop and assess cyclists' training programs, go to this link:

http://triablog.naturevalleybicyclefestival.com/2011/05/physiology-testing-is-not-only-for-the-pros/

Greg does testing in the School's Human and Sport Performance Laboratory under the guidance of lab director Dr. Stacy Ingraham.

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Lindsay Kipp, doctoral student in Kinesiology, has been awarded a competitive research grant from the North American Society for the Psychology of Sport and Physical Activity (NASPSPA). The grant will help support her research entitled, "Social Influences and Psychological and Physical Well-Being of Female Adolescents." Her study explores coach and peer influence of female gymnasts' well-being, including physical activity, self-esteem, affect, and eating attitudes. Gymnasts are of interest because they endure rigorous training, evaluative judging, and pressure to maintain a lean body, putting them at risk for stress and disordered eating. At the same time, supportive coaching behaviors and teammate interactions can enhance gymnasts' feelings of competence, autonomy, and relatedness, and ultimately promote well-being.

Lindsay is pursuing her doctoral degree with a specialization in sport and exercise psychology under the advisement of Maureen Weiss.

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Angela Mansfield, a literacy education Ph.D. student, was one out of the three students selected by Charter School Partners, a Minnesota-based non-profit charter support group, to go through a rigorous two-year school leader fellowship. The fellowship will culminate in the opening of high-performing, achievement-gap closing urban charter schools in the Twin Cities.

Mansfield, a Milken Educator Award Recipient, has been working with the Minneapolis Public Schools since 1997 as an exemplary teacher, a Reading First Literacy Coordinator, and, most recently, as a TAP mentor, providing instructional coaching to teachers to improve their performance as part of the well-regarded national System for Teacher and Student Advancement. Angela received a B.A. from Franklin and Marshall College, Lancaster, PA. and an M.Ed in literacy ('07) from CEHD.

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Alyssa Norris, kinesiology M.A. graduate in sport and exercise psychology, has been awarded the prestigious Student Diversity Award from the Association for Applied Sport Psychology (AASP). The award recognizes and honors the achievements of students involved in research, service, or applied experiences that focus on diversity issues such as race or ethnicity, sexual orientation, social class, or disability.

The award will be presented to Norris at the AASP annual conference in September in Honolulu, HI. Norris is graduating this spring and is advised by Nicole LaVoi, lecturer and associate director of the Tucker Center for Research on Girls and Women in Sport.

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Emily Houghton, School of Kinesiology doctoral student, has been awarded a fellowship for 2011-12 from the Edith Mueller Endowed Fund for Graduate Education in the Tucker Center for Research on Girls & Women in Sport. The award was established in the Tucker Center to honor Edie Mueller, daughter of Drs. Van and Mildred "Mike" Mueller. Dr. Van Mueller is professor emeritus in the former Department of Educational Policy and Administration; Dr. Mike Mueller is a CEHD alumna and a retired faculty member from Augsburg College. The Muellers have been major supporters of the Tucker Center since the early 1990s in large measure because they are deeply committed to research, education, and outreach that make a difference in people's lives.

Houghton will use the award to support her collaborative research project, "(In)visible Pioneers: Exploring the Experiences of African American Female Athletes during the Civil Rights Era." Her research examines the sporting experiences of six pioneering African American female athletes who participated in either high school or collegiate sports in the Twin Cities during the latter part of the civil rights movement. The critical question which guides her study is: What role did sports play in the lives of African American female athletes who grew up during the 1960s and 1970s? As part of this question, the investigation will identify the benefits of and barriers to sports participation for African American females, as well as the social processes that contributed to their relationships which have lasted over 40 years.

"Emily's commitment to social justice and giving voice to those who have typically been silenced is commendable. We are pleased to support her important work," says Tucker Center Associate Director Dr. Nicole LaVoi.

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Out of the numerous photographic entries submitted to C&I's 1st Annual Photo Contest, two students received awards for their outstanding images. Amy Frederick, a graduate student in the literacy education program, received the 1st place prize for her submission "Working with developing reader" and Suzan Koseoglu, a graduate student in the learning technologies program, received the 2nd place prize for her submission "LT Students getting ready for the Polar Plunge."

The photographic entries were judged on how well the image(s) portrayed a sense of C&I student life and culture.

Congratulations to Amy and Suzan!

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Nicole M. LaVoi, lecturer in Kinesiology and associate director for the Tucker Center for Research on Girls & Women in Sport, Austin Stair Calhoun, Kinesiology Ph.D. student, and Alicia Johnson, former Tucker Center intern, recently had their article accepted to the International Journal of Sport Communication (IJSC).

The paper, "Framing with family: Examining online coaching biographies for heteronormative and heterosexist narratives," examined over 1,800 online coaching biographies of Division I & III NCAA head coaches for textual representations of heteronormativity and heterosexism. The data demonstrates a near absence of GLBT coaches, suggesting digital content of intercollegiate athletic department web sites reproduce dominant gender ideologies and are plagued by homophobia in overt and subtle ways.

The article is set to be published in Volume 4 (Issue 3) of the IJSC.

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Mr. Tony Mayo, Kinesiology Ph.D. student, and Ms. Ya-wen Yu, Kinesiology Ph.D. candidate, recently received awards from the American Kinesiology Association (AKA).

Mr. Mayo was nominated by the School's Graduate Programs Committee in February, and has been selected to receive one of the American Kinesiology Association (AKA) Student Writing Awards for 2011. His paper, "Postural Effects of the Horizon on Land and at Sea," co-authored by Dr. Michael Wade and Dr. Tom Stoffregen, was published in Psychological Science in January, 2011. It was judged by the AKA Review Committee "to merit national recognition and to serve as an exemplar of graduate student research or scholarship." The committee noted that the article will make a significant contribution to the literature in the field of kinesiology.

Ms. Yu has been selected as an American Kinesiology Association (AKA) National Graduate Scholar for 2011. The award honors a select number of students whose academic and leadership records are distinctive. These students, who were nominated by faculty, have demonstrated an exceptional interest in the field of kinesiology by undertaking independent or guided research, assuming leadership positions, and having the potential for making a significant impact on the field. Ms. Yu's work with functional impact of postural control on visual performance in diverse situations is highly innovative and in each case she has assumed primary responsibility for conduct of the research.

This is the first year the AKA Graduate Student Writing and Scholar Awards have been presented. Recipients will receive a certificate and will be listed in AKA's archive of awardees on www.americankinesiology.org. A full listing of all award winners is available on the AKA Web site.

Both Mayo and Yu are studying Motor Learning/Motor Development and are advised by Dr. Tom Stoffregen.

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Dr. Mary Jo Kane and Dr. Heather Maxwell have had an article accepted for publication in the Journal of Sport Management. "Expanding the Boundaries of Sport Media Research: Using Critical Theory to Explore Consumer Responses to Representations of Women's Sports" is due to appear in May 2011.

Dr. Kane is professor and director of the School of Kinesiology. Dr. Maxwell is a former advisee of Dr. Kane, and earned her Ph.D. at the University of Minnesota in 2009.

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Yi-Chou Chen, School of Kinesiology Ph.D. student, has had a chapter accepted for publication in the forthcoming Encyclopedia of Sports and Physical Education. Chen has served as editor-in-chief for the Sports of Boxing section of the publication.

Chen and university faculties, scientists, and sport leaders, have been developing the encyclopedia for the past two years. The encyclopedia contains an estimated 9,000 terms from fifteen different scientific disciplines. The finished publication is to be presented by the Ministry of Education in Taiwan by December 2011, and is targeted at K-12 coaches, physical education instructors, university students, and general populations.

Yi-Chou is in his second year of his graduate program with an emphasis on Human Factors/Ergonomics, and is advised by Dr. Thomas Stoffregen.

Congratulations!

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Dr. Thomas Stoffregen, Kinesiology Professor and Director of the Affordance Perception-Action Laboratory (APAL), and two doctoral students, have had an article accepted for publication. Control of a Virtual Vehicle Influences Postural Activity and Motion Sickness by Xiao Dong, Ken Yoshida, and Thomas A. Stoffregen, was accepted by The Journal of Experimental Psychology: Applied.

Xiao Dong is a graduate student in Industrial Engineering, and Ken Yoshida is a Ph.D. candidate in Kinesiology. Both are members of APAL.

Posted by Molly Augustin at 3:29 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Kudos to Jennifer Bhalla, Ph.D, lecturer in Sport and Exercise Psychology in the School of Kinesiology, and Greg Rhodes, Kinesiology Ph.D. student, for going the distance along with 26,907 others in the Boston Marathon on April 18.

Rhodes completed the race with a time of 3 hours, 10 minutes, followed by Bhalla with a time of 3 hours, 41 minutes.

Posted by Molly Augustin at 2:55 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Jessica E. Moyer, M.S., C.A.S. (Ph.D. candidate in literacy education, Curriculum and Instruction) presented at the 2011 Doctoral Research Showcase on her dissertation research- Teens Today Don't Read Any More: A Study of Differences in Interest and Comprehension Across Multiple Formats. Jessica's presentation is part of winning a 2010- 2011 doctoral fellowship from the university. She was recently featured in an article in Finance and Commerce, an independent newspaper reporting news, analysis and commentary on Minnesota business.

Posted by Greg Steinke at 12:22 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Kristin Garland, master's degree student in sport management, has been named a prestigious Fulbright Scholar and is the 2011-12 winner of the University of Minnesota Graduate School's Fulbright Scholarship exchange program with the Norwegian University of Science and Technology in Trondheim, Norway. Garland is advised by Eric Brownlee, lecturer in sport management.

Frode Moen, leader of the Olympic Training Center in Trondheim, has invited Garland to travel to Norway to examine the differences between the school-sponsored model of athletics and club cross-country ski teams, focusing on the experiences of elite skiers by evaluating the relationship between achievement and the integration of sport into the academic model. In addition, Garland will explore how collegiate athletic teams can provide greater support to international student-athletes, which would ensure a more meaningful experience and will hopefully encourage more international student-athletes to study abroad.

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Azizah Jor'dan, PhD candidate in Kinesiology, has received the 2011-2012 Bloedow Scholarship Award from the Minnesota Gerontological Society (MGS). The $1,000 award will be presented to Ms. Jor'dan at the MGS Spring Conference on Friday, April 29th, at Earle Brown Heritage Center in Brooklyn Center. Ms. Jor'dan is one of two recipients of the scholarship. She is advised by Prof. Michael G. Wade. Congratulations!

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Four soccer coaches from Uganda, including the current Women's National Team coach, Majidah Nantanda, will visit the University of Minnesota March 30-April 5 as part of the International Sport Connection (ISC) Coach Training/Cultural Exchange Program, which is funded by the SportsUnited Division of the U.S. Department of State's Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs. Diane Wiese-Bjornstal, associate professor in the School of Kinesiology, and former advisee Jens Omli, assistant professor at Texas Tech University, are two of the partners in ISC. Last spring they hosted several Ugandan coaches in a training program in the Twin Cities designed to develop coaching curriculum for children and youth. Last May, Omli, Wiese-Bjornstal, lecturer Stacy Ingraham, and others traveled to Kampala, Uganda to provide training to 181 youth coaches in the area.

Coach Nantanda, along with Elsie Namagambe, Martin Mugabi, and Daniel Kiwanuka, will tour U of M athletic facilities, meet with kinesiology students and faculty members, and share their experiences with the community. All are invited to their public presentation on Friday, April 1, 11:45 a.m.-1:15 p.m. in 206 Cooke Hall, to hear the coaches discuss sport in Uganda and their unique approaches to coaching youth soccer players.

In the photo above, taken in Kampala, are (l to r) Northern Illinois University coach Carrie Barker, Lisa Berg (former Gopher), Nantanda, Ingraham, and Wiese-Bjornstal.

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Research by Dr. Tom Stoffregen, Kinesiology professor, and his associates, Ph.D. student Tony Mayo and Professor Michael Wade, has been garnering a lot of attention nationally and internationally over the past few months. See the local story on the research that is the first to prove scientifically the thousands of years of sailing advice at the U of M Moment link: http://www1.umn.edu/news/multimedia/2011/UR_CONTENT_305540.html

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Professor Tom Stoffregen has been researching motion sickness and body sway in his Affordance Perception-Action Laboratory for many years, and on location on ships in various oceans and waterways most recently. His latest article, published with Professor Michael Wade and Ph.D. student Tony Mayo, which appeared in the journal Psychological Science this month, has been attracting a lot of attention around the world.

A recent article in Science Daily, "Centuries of Sailors Weren't Wrong: Looking at the Horizon Stabilizes Posture," notes that "Everybody who has been aboard a ship has heard the advice: if you feel unsteady, look at the horizon ... Thomas A. Stoffregen of the University of Minnesota has been studying how much people rock back and forth in different situations, and what this has to do with motion sickness." More stories on their research have appeared recently in Daily News & Analysis, Science News, and India Talkies.

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Dr. Mary Jo Kane, Kinesiology professor and director, and advisee Dr. Heather Maxwell (PhD Kinesiology, 2009), have published an article related to their ongoing research on gender and sport media in the Journal of Sport Management. The article, "Expanding the boundaries of sport media research: Using critical theory to explore consumer responses to representations of women's sports" can be previewed now at JSM In Press:

http://journals.humankinetics.com/jsm-in-press/jsm-in-press/expanding-the-boundaries-of-sport-media-research-using-critical-theory-to-explore-consumer-responses-to-representations-of-womens-sports

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Claud Allaire, Kinesiology Ph.D. student in sport management, had the opportunity to be involved in the hiring of new Gophers Head Football Coach Jerry Kill last month. Mr. Allaire, a member of the executive committee of the Minnesota Football Coaches Association and former Simley co-head coach, was one of six current and former high school coaches who met with the U of M's athletic leadership in November to discuss the transition and search process for a new U of M head coach. Athletic Director Joel Maturi invited the group to participate in the process and help identify the qualities desirable in a new Gophers head coach.

"It was clear that we were invited to this meeting because the university's leadership recognizes the importance of the relationship between the Gophers staff and the high school coaches," stated Mr. Allaire. "We had a very productive discussion and were able to highlight what the next Gopher coach should bring to the program."

Coach Jerry Kill was named the new Gophers head coach on December 6 and the committee was invited to meet with him the next day at TCF stadium. "I'm convinced that Coach Kill brings the strong vision, depth of character, and ability to relate to people that we need for the Gophers program to compete at the Big Ten level," commented Mr. Allaire.

Posted by Marta Fahrenz at 1:14 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Dr. Don Dengel, associate professor in Kinesiology, has published two articles recently with current and former graduate students:

Draheim, C. C., Geijer, J. R., & Dengel, D. R. Comparison of Intima-media thickness of the carotid artery and cardiovascular disease risk factors in adults with vs. without the Down syndrome. American Journal of Cardiology, published October, 2010

Templeton, D.A., Kelly, A.S., Steinberger, J., and Dengel, D. R. Lower relative bone mineral content in obese adolescents: Role of non-weight bearing exercise. Pediatric Exercise Science, 22, 2010.

Dr. Dengel's advisees are Aaron Kelly (Ph.D. 2004), Danielle Templeton (Ph.D. 2011), and Justin Geiger, second-year Ph.D.

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Anthony Mayo, Ph.D. student in Kinesiology, is the first author on an article published in Psychological Science released January 11. "Postural effects of the horizon on land and sea" examines the effects of looking at the horizon as a way to reduce the body's instability while at sea. Mr. Mayo published the article along with Dr. Michael Wade and Dr. Tom Stoffregen, his adviser:

Postural Effects of the Horizon on Land and at Sea
Anthony M. Mayo, Michael G. Wade, and Thomas A. Stoffregen
Being aboard a ship swaying in the water can result in feelings of instability and can lead to sea sickness. Sea travelers have been told for generations to look at the horizon to help overcome the feelings of instability, but is there any truth to that advice? During a cruise in Mexico, crew members' body sway was measured as they stood on a platform, both at the dock and on the moving ship, and focused on a near target, a far target, or the horizon. On land, standing body sway was greater when participants looked at the horizon than when they looked at a nearby target. On the moving ship, body sway was the smallest when participants looked at the horizon, thus confirming the advice to look at the horizon to stabilize body posture while at sea.

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Dr. Diane Treat-Jacobson, School of Nursing, who has been working on various research projects with Dr. Arthur Leon in the School of Kinesiology and his former Ph.D. student, Dr. Ulf Bronas, also of the School of Nursing, was presented with a prestigious award at the 2010 Vascular Disease Foundation Annual Meeting last fall. Dr. Treat-Jacobson was awarded the Best PAD Research Award in Vascular Medicine for work in the creation of new clinical research relevant to the understanding and treatment of PAD (peripheral artery disease) published in 2009. The research article, "Efficacy of arm-ergometry versus treadmill exercise training to improve walking distance in patients with claudication" was published with Dr. Leon and Dr. Bronas.

Posted by Marta Fahrenz at 2:56 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Kinesiology Ph.D. student Tony Mayo, advised by Prof. Tom Stoffregen, will give a colloquium on "Postural Effects of the Horizon on Land and at Sea" on Monday, November 22, at 4 p.m. in 405 Walter Library. The colloquium is sponsored by the Center for Clinical Movement Science.

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Prof. Don Dengel, exercise physiologist in the School of Kinesiology, has had some recent publications with colleagues and students:

Dengel, D.R., & Bronas U.G.The role of endothelial dysfunction on development and progression of atherosclerosis and methods to assess vascular function and structure. American Journal of Lifestyle Medicine, 4(6):445-456, 2010. Dr. Bronas is a former Kineisology Ph.D. student who studied with Dr. Arthur Leon.

Dengel, D.R., Hearst, M.O., Harmon, J.H., Sirard, J., Heitzler, C.D., & Lytle, L.A. Association of the home environment with cardiovascular and metabolic biomarkers in youth. Preventive Medicine, 51: 259-261, 2010. PMCID: PMC2939178. Mr. Harmon is a technician in the lab.

Scott, A.T., Metzig, A.M., Hames, R.K., Schwarzenberg, S.J., Dengel, D.R., Biltz, G.R., & Kelly, A.S. Acanthosis nigricans and oral glucose tolerance in obese children. Clinical Pediatrics,49(1):69-71, 2010. Dr. Biltz is a lecturer in Kinesiology; Dr. Scott and Dr. Metzig are former students of Prof. Dengel; Mr. Hames is a Kinesiology M.A. student advised by Prof. Dengel.

Posted by Marta Fahrenz at 3:47 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Kinesiology doctoral student Chelsey Thul has received a $2,500 Thesis Research Grant from the Graduate School to support her research on overcoming barriers to physical activity for adolescent girls. Ms. Thul is working with Somali adolescent girls living in the Cedar Riverside neighborhood to study the social, environmental, cultural, and motivational challenges they experience in pursuing physical activity.

Ms. Thul is a graduate assistant in Kinesiology and in the Tucker Center for Research on Girls & Women in Sport.

Posted by Marta Fahrenz at 12:12 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Laura Polikowky, M.A. student in Kinesiology and advised by Prof. Beth Lewis, was quoted in the November issue of Runner's World. Ms. Polikowsky, who also is a running coach, was the consulted expert in the Challenge Q&A section of the magazine on whether pushing a stroller while running counts for extra miles. Ms. Polikowsky responded that while you don't earn extra miles, there are other benefits of pushing a stroller, such as burning more calories. "The effort of pushing a stroller can also strengthen your deltoids, pectorals, and biceps," she added.

Posted by Marta Fahrenz at 3:33 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

FreeMotion Fitness™, a global manufacturer of fitness equipment, has donated six pieces of fitness equipment to the School of Kinesiology's new research facility, the Human and Sport Performance Laboratory (HSPL).

The donation will enable Kinesiology researchers and students to use specialized equipment to conduct their studies in strength and cardiovascular training and interventions; metabolism and bioenergetics (how fat and carbohydrates in food enable human movement); kinetic chain recruitment patterns (how muscles work in unison); the use of vibration in exercise warm-up and recovery; and functional movement patterns related to balance, gait, and preventing falls.

Eric Statt, Ph.D. student in Kinesiology, contacted FreeMotion Fitness for information about a specific piece of equipment, the Incline Trainer, to use in his dissertation research on bioenergetics. Mr. Statt's initial contact with the company led to the donation, which includes an incline trainer; a vibration plate used in muscle activation and recovery; and four pieces of strength equipment. All equipment will be used in research related to human performance and movement.

"The donation from FreeMotion will allow us to develop our sports performance research with state-of-the-art equipment," says Dr. Stacy Ingraham, Kinesiology lecturer and one of the lead scholars in the HSPL. "The donation facilitates our lab and our graduate students to pursue important questions specific to human and sports performance, which will contribute to the body of knowledge in the very visible world of athletics and the science of physiology related to sports performance."

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On October 22, under an unseasonably warm sun, scores of University students, faculty, and staff participated in the U of M's first Gopher Adventure Race. The race, conceived and organized by Dr. Connie Magnuson, Kinesiology lecturer in recreation, park and leisure studies program, was so successful that plans are already being made for the GAR 2011.

For more details, check out the Gopher Adventure Race Web page (http://www.cehd.umn.edu/kin/adventure/) and watch the video at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zKdEf38EXfo.

Posted by Marta Fahrenz at 12:11 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Jessica Galvan, Ph.D. student in Kinesiology with an emphasis in exercise physiology, has been selected to present her research poster at the Research Poster Symposium sponsored by the Community of Scholars Program this Friday, November 5, at the Campus Club in Coffman Memorial Union.

Ms. Galvan's poster is titled "Analysis of Aerobic Capacity Prediction Equations for the Shuttle Run Test in Hispanic Elementary School-Aged Children." Eighteen posters were chosen for the symposium from departments across the University. The poster presentations will be held from 10:00 a.m.-11:30 a.m., followed by lunch and roundtable discussions from 11:30 a.m.- 1:00 p.m.

Ms. Galvan is advised by Prof. Daheia Barr-Anderson.

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Megan Shreffler, Ph.D. student in Kinesiology with an emphasis in sport management, won Best Student Paper at the 8th Annual Sport Marketing Association Conference last week in New Orleans, LA. The paper, entitled "The Socialization of Chicagoans into Baseball Fandom," won this prestigious award, which is the association's highest honor for graduate students. Ms. Shreffler is advised by Prof. Stephen Ross.

Posted by Marta Fahrenz at 9:40 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Dr. Jo Ann Buysse, lecturer in Kinesiology, has published a journal article with Kinesiology master's student Bria Borcherding:

Buysse, Jo Ann M., & Borcherding, Bria. Framing Gender and Disability: A Cross-Cultural Analysis of Photographs From the 2008 Paralympic Games. Full Text Available. International Journal of Sport Communication, Sep2010, Vol. 3, Issue 3, p308.

Posted by Marta Fahrenz at 8:56 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Kinesiology professor Tom Stoffregen, along with his graduate student, Yawen Yu, and colleague Benoit Bardy, has had a paper accepted for publication in the Journal of Motor Behavior: The paper is titled "Influences of head and torso movement before and during affordance perception" and Ms. Yu is the lead author. The article is based on a study that is part of Ms. Yu's doctoral dissertation project.

Posted by Marta Fahrenz at 9:22 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Kinesiology movement science professors Dr. Michael G. Wade and Dr. Tom Stoffregen have published an article with Dr. Wade's former advisee, Dr. Chih-Hui Chang (Ph.D. Kinesiology, 2006), who is also the lead author:

Chang, C.-H., Wade, M. G., Stoffregen, T. A., Hsu, C.-Y., & Pan, C.-Y. (2010). Visual tasks and postural sway in children with and without Autism Spectrum Disorder. Research in Developmental Disabilities, 31, 1536-1542.

Posted by Marta Fahrenz at 2:21 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Clinton Warren, Kinesiology Ph.D. candidate, and his adviser, Prof. Stephen Ross, have had an article accepted for publication in the International Journal of Sport Management. Mr. Warren is the lead author. "Beyond Beckham: The designated player rule in major league soccer" looks at the impact highly paid designated players have had on spectator attendance. The article will be published in 2011.

Posted by Marta Fahrenz at 3:29 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

The Mayo Clinic's Sports Medicine Center is hosting a collaborative "Ice Hockey Summit: Action on Concussion" in Rochester, MN, October 19-20, 2010. The summit will bring together top scientists, trainers, coaches, officials and manufacturers from across the United States and Canada to discuss concussion-related issues, including the science of concussions, their impact, return to play guidelines, equipment manufacturing, rules and regulations such as body checking, and the challenges of officiating and enforcement.

Prof. Diane Wiese-Bjornstal and Dr. Nicole LaVoi from Kinesiology will be attending. Participants will develop an "Action Plan: Integrating Action Items into the Strategic Plan" and a strategy to share the plan with the hockey community. While the summit will focus on hockey, concussion-related topics will apply to all sports.

The summit is jointly sponsored by USA Hockey, the International Ice Hockey Federation, the Ontario Neurotrauma Foundation, The Hockey Equipment Certification Council and supported by Team Wendy and the Johannson-Gund endowment.

The summit is offering a reduced registration rate of $25 for students or media representatives who are unable to afford the standard rate.

More information is available at www.mayo.edu/cme/sports-medicine.html

Posted by Marta Fahrenz at 9:29 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Chris Lundstrom, kinesiology Ph.D. student and elite marathoner, was a proud member of Team USA in the World Mountain Running Championships in Slovenia recently. Lundstrom competed in the national qualifying race in June. He finished 8th, but one runner dropped out and another was injured, so Lundstrom was next on the list to run in Slovenia during the Labor Day weekend. He ran the 12-kilometer race, which involves a 4,400-foot climb in the Alps, in 1 hour, 4 minutes, finishing sixth out of six USA runners, but he still made a contribution to the silver medal-winning men's open division team.

Read the Star Tribune article on Lundstrom's experience and training regimen.

Lundstrom is the advisee of Dr. Stacy Ingraham and Dr. Arthur Leon.

Posted by Marta Fahrenz at 4:35 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Kinesiology doctoral student Claud Allaire was recognized in the last issue of the American Football Coaches Association (AFCA) quarterly publication Xtra Point for his contributions to the Minnesota Football Coaches Association. The AFCA is the national professional organization for all football coaches.

Posted by Marta Fahrenz at 3:53 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Dr. Tom Stoffregen, professor in Kinesiology, has published two articles with students/colleagues in the prestigious journal, Ecological Psychology:

Stoffregen, T. A., Yoshida, K., Villard, S., Scibora, L., & Bardy, B. G. (2010). Stance width influences postural stability and motion sickness. Ecological Psychology, 22, 169-191.

Mantel, B., Bardy, B. G., & Stoffregen, T. A. (2009). Locomotor assessment of whether an object is reachable. Ecological Psychology, 22, 192-211.

Ken Yoshida and Lesley Scibora are doctoral candidates in Kinesiology. Dr. Villard is a Visiting Scholar in Dr. Stoffregen's lab, Affordance Perception-Action Laboratory. Dr. Mantel received the PhD in Sport Science from the Universite de Montpellier-1 (France); Dr. Stoffregen was a member of his PhD committee.

Posted by Marta Fahrenz at 3:08 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Dr. Connie Magnuson, School of Kinesiology lecturer, led a group of 13 CEHD students on a U of M Learning Abroad course to Kenya in May. While climbing Mt. Kenya (the second highest mountain on the continent), students, faculty, and expert guides presented lessons on topics such as the impact of global climate change, wildlife preservation, political involvement in wilderness management, wilderness and minority cultures and more. The students stayed for a few days in the village of Kambi, living with families in the village and preparing a newly built classroom for 6th grade students at Kambi Primary School. The students' many life-changing experiences are captured in an inspiring video created by Dr. Magnuson:

http://animoto.com/play/Wnlao7QWOinShwGW54Iuww?utm_content=main_link

Posted by Marta Fahrenz at 10:01 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

In addition to his full-time career and his graduate studies,Tony Yazbeck, an M.Ed. student in applied kinesiology, is committed to helping and mentoring young people in education and athletics. WCCO-TV features him in a "Life to the Max" segment. Watch his inspiring story.

Posted by Marta Fahrenz at 4:27 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

The U.S. Department of State, Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs has featured the International Sport Connection (ISC) on their SportsUnited website . The University of Minnesota and Macalester College are partnering with the Federation of Uganda Football Association (FUFA) to administer the ISC program in Uganda. School of Kinesiology associate professor Diane Weise-Bjornstal, lecturer Dr. Stacy Ingraham, and Dr. Jens Omli traveled to Uganda in May as part of the U of M delegation to train, teach, and mentor Ugandan youth soccer coaches.

Posted by Marta Fahrenz at 4:07 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

School of Kinesiology third-year sport sociology doctoral student and Tucker Center research assistant Austin Stair Calhoun will take part in a panel on Social Media in Sport on Friday, June 18, at the Target Center at 7:30 am. Minnesota Lynx's Candice Wiggins, Greg Litman (WCCO), Matt Teske (@StPaulSaints), and Scott Spiridigliozzi (Minnesota Timberwolves) will join Calhoun at the 27th Social Media Breakfast in Minneapolis & St. Paul.

Admission to the event is free and a limited number of tickets are still available.

Posted by Austin Stair Calhoun at 1:08 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Kinesiology Ph.D. student Austin Stair Calhoun, sport sociology, is a featured researcher in the University's latest Driven to Discover: The Research Series. She describes her dissertation research on "Examining Homophobia in Sports and New Media," explaining how she became interested in the topic and her methods of research. Professor Mary Jo Kane, her adviser, is also interviewed in the video feature.

Posted by Marta Fahrenz at 4:12 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Professor Tom Stoffregen's most recent publication is with Ph.D. candidate Yawen Yu, recent Ph.D. graduate Jane Yank, and former NIH-supported post-doc Sebastien Villard:

Yu, Y., Yank, J. R., Villard, S., & Stoffregen, T. A. (2010). Postural activity and visual vigilance performance during rough seas. Aviation, Space, and Environmental Medicine, in press.

Posted by Marta Fahrenz at 4:01 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Lesley Scibora, Ph.D. candidate in Kinesiology with an emphasis in exercise physiology, has been awarded a Doctoral Dissertation Fellowship from the Graduate School for 2010-2011. This prestigious and highly competitive fellowship will support Ms.Scibora in her research and dissertation preparation during the the 2010-11 academic year. Ms. Scibora is advised by Prof. Moira Petit.

Posted by Marta Fahrenz at 3:39 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Danielle Templeton, Ph.D. candidate in Kinesiology with an exercise physiology emphasis, has been offered a three-year Cardiology T32 PostDoctoral Fellowship at the University of Colorado in Boulder. She'll be working with Dr. Christopher DeSouza and Dr. Brian Stauffer on a study titled, "Dietary Linoleic Acid, Cardiovascular Function and Heart Failure."

The fellowship begins this August. Congratulations, Danielle!

Posted by Marta Fahrenz at 3:30 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Prof. Juergen Konczak, Kinesiology professor, has published an article with graduate students Joshua Aman and Chiahao Lu titled "The integration of vision and haptic sensing: a computational and neural perspective." It will appear online this month in the journal Cognitive Critique. This is the first review paper to be published by students Aman and Lu, who are Prof. Konczak's assistants in the Human Sensorimotor Control Lab.

Posted by Marta Fahrenz at 1:22 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Doctoral candidate Phebe Veronica Jatau is one of four students highlighted in a UMNews story on research by recipients of the Graduate School's 2009-10 Doctoral Dissertation Fellowships. Her research focuses on high school dropout rates among northern Nigerian women and the gender gap and inequities that pervade the educational system. Jatau is in the literacy education track in the Department of Curriculum and Instruction.

Jatau is also featured in a University video called "Dissertations in one minute or less."

Posted by Greg Steinke at 4:49 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

KARE 11 reporters Eric Perkins and Dave Watkins played singles tennis for 36 hours at Gustavus Adolphus College to break the current World Record for continuous singles tennis earlier this month. Part of their goal in taking on a tennis marathon was to raise money for the local American Cancer Society Relay for Life to support former Gustavus tennis coach Steve Wilkinson, who is battling cancer. The players thanked current Gustavus coach, Kinesiology Ph.D. student Tommy Valentini, and Wilkinson for the opportunity. Valentini and Wilkinson made Perkins and Watkins honorary members of the Gustavus team. Valentini is studying sport sociology and is advised by Dr. Nicole LaVoi. Read more about the story at:

http://www.kare11.com/sports/sports_article.aspx?storyid=849465&catid=24

Posted by Marta Fahrenz at 3:59 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Dr. Tom Stoffregen, professor in Kinesiology, announces a new publication:

Stoffregen, T. A., Yoshida, K., Villard, S., Scibora, L., & Bardy, B. G. (2010). Stance width influences postural stability and motion sickness. Ecological Psychology, in press.

Publication authors Ken Yoshida and Lesley Scibora are School of Kinesiology Ph.D. candidates. Sebastien Villard held a postdoctoral position with Dr. Stoffregen from 2006-08.

Posted by Marta Fahrenz at 9:43 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

School of Kinesiology second-year sport sociology doctoral student and Tucker Center research assistant Austin Stair Calhoun has been selected to receive a Women's Philanthropic Leadership Circle Award for 2010 in the amount of $2,000. She was selected from a large pool of highly qualified and very impressive female graduate students to receive this prestigious award. The WPLC will be holding its annual awards celebration to honor Austin and other of the Circle's award recipients on June 15 in St Paul.

Posted by Jonathan Sweet at 9:14 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Kristen Pickett, Ph.D. candidate in the School of Kinesiology, has accepted a prestigious postdoctoral fellowship at Washington University in St. Louis beginning next fall. Pickett will be working with Dr. Gammon Earhart and Dr. Joel Perlmutter at Washington University through a joint appointment in Movement Science, the Department of Physical Therapy, and the Department of Neuroscience in the Medical School.

As part of her fellowship, she will be working on an MRI/Parkinson's disease study that will look at patients' gait function and brain function in the pathology group. Pickett will be traveling to a conference in Glasgow, Scotland next fall with her WU research team to present her work. She is an advisee of Dr. Juergen Konczak.

Posted by Marta Fahrenz at 12:18 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Lindsay Kipp, School of Kinesiology PhD student in Physical Activity Social and Behavioral Sciences, has been awarded the 2010-11 Eloise M. Jaeger Scholarship for Students in the Tucker Center award in the amount of $2,000. The Eloise M. Jaeger Scholarship was established to ensure that the best female and male students in the nation are able to participate in significant education and research initiatives designed to improve the lives of girls and women.

This scholarship provides an opportunity for promising young students to meet their educational and career goals, especially those who might not otherwise have the financial means to further their aspirations. Kipp will use the funds to support her project titled, "Predictors of Well-being in Female Adolescent Athletes," researching determinants of female adolescent athletes' physical and psychological well-being. The research intersects the areas of gender, adolescent psychology, and prevention science and explores a series of relationships among mechanisms of coaching influence, psychological need, satisfaction, and indices of physical and psychological well-being. Findings from the study will be used to design an intervention study to promote positive coaching behaviors in an effort to improve perceptions of competence, autonomy, and relatedness, and ultimately indices of subjective well-being.

Posted by Jonathan Sweet at 10:46 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Patrick Wilson, Kinesiology M.A., was featured in an article on supplements in the Twin Cities Daily Planet. Wilson, who is a registered dietitian, commented on the prevalent use of supplements, often in very high doses, that many weight lifters take to increase performance. "When you talk about these high doses, it is alarming," said Wilson. "I think it's ludicrous to think you can take as much as you want and not have any harmful effects."

The complete article is available at http://www.tcdailyplanet.net/news/2010/03/30/raising-bar. Wilson is the advisee of Dr. Stacy Ingraham.

Posted by Marta Fahrenz at 2:47 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Kinesiology M.Ed. student and Women's Sports Foundation Board of Trustee member Angela Ruggiero was recently elected to the International Olympic Committee's (IOC) Athletes' Commission. Ruggeiro, who was elected by her peers, will serve an eight-year term representing Olympic athletes to the IOC. Commission members also take part in evaluating cities competing to host the Olympic Games, reviewing sports programs for the Games, and anti-doping efforts.

Ruggiero, a star player on the U.S. Olympic women's hockey team, recently participated in her fourth Winter Olympic Games.

Posted by Marta Fahrenz at 1:49 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Azizah Jor'dan, Kinesiology Ph.D student in the Movement Science emphasis, has been splitting her teaching assistantship responsibilities between supporting faculty and teaching bowling in the Physical Education program. Now students will be getting their bowling lessons from a coach certified by the US Bowling Congress. Ms. Jor'dan was awarded Level 1 Certification on February 24. Congratulations!

Posted by Marta Fahrenz at 4:02 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Jim Winges, Ph.D. student in Kinesiology, and Sarah Erickson, U of M Communication Studies undergrad, co-authored an article on guidelines for parents and coaches to help their young hockey players achieve their best. The article appeared in Minnesota Hockey HEP Newsletter.

Posted by Marta Fahrenz at 3:49 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Jens Omli, a post-doctoral fellow at the Institute of Child Development, is building on the understanding of sports psychology he gained during his doctoral program in kinesiology and his understanding of child development gained as a postdoctoral student at the Institute of Child Development, to coordinate the training of more than 2,000 soccer coaches in Uganda.

The International Sport Connection Soccer Coach Education program that Omli and Kinesiology associate professor Diane Wiese-Bjornstal, developed, has received a two-year $212,000 grant from the U.S. Department of State's Bureau of Education and Cultural Affairs in support of international diplomacy and outreach.

Omli, who is mentored by professors Dante Cicchetti and Nicki Crick, will be working with the Federation of Uganda Football Associations to promote a style of coaching already successfully used by Ugandan soccer coach Stone Kyambadde with his Wolves Football Program that serves young players who have grown up on the streets in Kampala, Uganda.

When Omli first traveled on a project to Uganda three years ago on a Eloise Jaegger Scholarship, he spent time with the Wolves and observed first-hand the way Kymbadde mentored players and taught them both life and soccer skills. The training Omli developed is modeled after what Kymbadde has done with his teams of players over the past 25 years. Omli will travel to Uganda this summer along with Wiese-Bjornstal and Stacy Ingraham, coordinator of the coaching program in the School of Kinesiology, to launch the coach-training program.

Omli says in Uganda organizations often fail, but good ideas spread like wildfire. He is confident the ideas promoted in the training will take hold in Uganda and hopes that the network of coaches can be expanded to neighboring African countries and urban areas within the United States.

Posted by Danielle Bordeleau at 1:27 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Angela Ruggiero, known to the world as a star player on the Olympics women's ice hockey team (and a contestant fired on "The Apprentice" who was later offered a job by Donald Trump), has a U of M connection. She is pursuing her M.Ed. degree in Sport Management from CEHD/School of Kinesiology. Her adviser is Brandi Hoffman, coordinator in the School of Kinesiology.

Ruggiero was featured last week in an online article for Team USA Ice Hockey.

Posted by Marta Fahrenz at 9:30 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

The high-tech Bod Pod from the School of Kinesiology's Laboratory of Physiological Hygiene and Exercise Science was featured recently in several local media outlets.The Bod Pod is an egg-shaped device that measures an individual's body composition as they sit in the machine. It provides more accurate and complete measurements than the traditional methods of calipers or water immersion. Links to local media coverage include

"The incredible Egg" - Star Tribune

"Bod Pod Changing Fitness at U of M" - Fox 9

"New machine offers a faster, more accurate way to measure a body, track a fitness routine" - KARE 11

For more information or to schedule use of the Bod Pod email bodpod@umn.edu

Posted by Marta Fahrenz at 3:14 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Thomas Stoffregen, Ph.D., professor in the School of Kinesiology, has published an article with four of his students. Yawen Yu and Jane Redfield Yank are graduate students in Kinesiology. Sebastien Villard was a post-doc in APAL, and Yasunobu Katsumata, who is a doctoral student at Toyohashi University of Technology (Japan) spent a summer working in APAL as a visiting Research Assistant.

Yu, Y., Yank, J. R., Katsumata, Y., Villard, S., Kennedy, R. S., & Stoffregen, T. A. (2009). Visual vigilance performance and standing posture at sea. Aviation, Space, and Environmental Medicine, in press.

Posted by John Brian Becker at 12:10 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Three Kinesiology doctoral students were awarded Thesis Research Grants by the Graduate School.

Nicole Bolter, behavioral science, and Lesley Scibora, exercise science, were awarded grants from the Graduate School fund. Susan Novotny, exercise science, was awarded a grant from the Patrick and Kathy Lewis fund. The Graduate School praised the three students for their "impressive academic credentials and strong research proposal."

The students' advisers are Prof. Maureen Weiss (Bolter) and Prof. Moira Petit (Scibora and Novotny). Congratulations to all!

Posted by Marta Fahrenz at 12:53 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Fall semester's CEHD magazine Connect spotlights a host of Kinesiology faculty and students. Read about Kinesiology student Heather Dorniden, U of M track team star, and how she copes with dueling pressures of competing on the field and achieving success in the classroom: More Than Game.

The important relationship of physical activity to lifelong health and well-being is explored in the article Teaming Up. Tucker Center faculty and associated faculty Daheia Barr-Anderson, Lisa Kihl, Nicole LaVoi, and Jo Ann Buysse, and graduate student Chelsey Thul, are doing research and working on a variety of projects to bring the message of the vital importance of exercise and physical activity to local and international communities.

And in the article The Sporting Life, , Prof. Maureen Weiss and Dr. Nicole LaVoi share their knowledge and research on kids' participation in youth sports.

You can also view the entire issue of Connect.

Posted by Marta Fahrenz at 11:10 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

The Tucker Center's Chesley Thul and Kelli Blankeship are presenting research posters Wednesday, October 7, from 1:00-4:00 p.m. in the TCF Stadium at the Student Scholar & Public Engagement Showcase.

Posted by Jonathan Sweet at 10:40 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Kinesiology doctoral candidate Jane Yank is presenting at the International Graphonomics Society meeting at the University of Bourgogne, Dijon, France, September 13-16, 2009. The topic of her talk is "Visuomotor Tracking in a Pursuit Loop-drawing Task," in which she discusses the effects of concurrent visual feedback on timing and fluidity in hand movements.

Ms. Yank co-authored the paper with Arend Van Gemmert, Ph.D., Louisiana State University. Ms. Yank's adviser is Dr. Michael Wade.

Posted by Marta Fahrenz at 9:27 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Tom Stoffregen, Ph.D., professor in Kinesiology, announces the publication of an article he wrote with a colleague and a graduate student in the Affordance Perception-Action Laboratory (APAL). Sebastien Villard, Ph.D., was an NIH-funded post-doc in APAL. Yawen Yu is a graduate student in APAL.

Stoffregen, T. A., Villard, S., & Yu, Y. (2009). Body sway at sea for two visual tasks and three stance widths. Aviation, Space, and Environmental Medicine, in press.

Posted by John Brian Becker at 4:42 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Michael Wade, Ph.D., professor in the School of Kinesiology, and his former graduate student, James Hackney Ph.D., have published a new article.

Hackney, J. M., Wade,M. G., Larson, C., Smith, J. P., & Rakow,J., Impairment in anterior cruciate ligament reconstructed subjects in adjusting ground reaction forces in running. Physical Therapy Theory and Practice, in press.

Posted by John Brian Becker at 3:51 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Tom Stoffregen, Ph.D., professor in Kinesiology, has published two new articles in the field of movement science. Several of his current and former students also contributed to these articles.

Fu-Chen Chen and Ya-Wen Yu are kinesiology graduate students in working in the Affordance Perception-Action Laboratory (APAL). Sebastien Villard, Ph.D., was an NIH-funded post-doc in APAL. Chunggon Kim, Ph.D., received his doctoral degree under Stoffregen's guidance. Drs. Ito and Bardy are (respectively) Japanese and French research collaborators.

His most recent articles follow.

Stoffregen, T. A., Villard, S., Kim, C., Ito, K., & Bardy, B. G. (2009). Coupling of head and body movement with motion of the audible environment. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Human Perception & Performance, 35, 1221-1231.
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Stoffregen, T. A., Chen, F.-C., Yu, Y., & Villard, S. (2009). Stance width and angle at sea: Effects of sea state and body orientation. Aviation, Space, and Environmental Medicine, in press.

Posted by Marta Fahrenz at 8:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

At the NASSM conference in Columbia, SC, last week, Stephen Ross, Ph.D., presented several papers along with Lisa Kihl, Ph.D., Nicole LaVoi, Ph.D., Eric Brownlee, Ph.D., and doctoral candidate Heather Maxwell and doctoral student Clinton Warren. The University of Minnesota was well represented at the conference by current faculty and students as well as former students (Pat Walsh, Ph.D. 2008; Jina Bang, Ph.D. 2007; and James Chien, Ph.D. 2006).

Posted by Marta Fahrenz at 8:59 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Austin Stair Calhoun and Emily J. Houghton, Ph.D. students in sport sociology, presented at the sixth Conference of the European Association for Sociology of Sport (EASS), held in Rome from May 27-31. Their presentation was entitled, Examining Elite Sport Representations in Social Media: Conceptualizing Twitter. The exploratory study focused on the relationship between Twitter and sport.

Posted by Austin Stair Calhoun at 11:33 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Tom Stoffregen, Ph.D. professor in Kinesiology has published an article with Jane Yank, Ph.D. candidate in Kinesiology.

"The Postural Responses of Adults Who Are Blind to a Moving Environment" by Thomas A. Stoffregen, Kiyohide Ito, Philip Hove, Jane Redfield Yank, and Benoit G. Bardy, has been accepted for publication in the Journal of Visual Impairment and Blindness.

Posted by John Brian Becker at 9:58 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Katie Anderson, M.A. candidate in Kinesiology, has been awarded the 2009 Eloise M. Jaeger Scholarship for Students at the Tucker Center. Anderson's research interests focus on youth physical activity and sedentary behaviors.

Posted by Jonathan Sweet at 5:09 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Julie Hughes, Ph.D. candidate in Kinesiology, has been awarded a prestigious Doctoral Dissertation Fellowship from the Graduate School for 2009-2010. These fellowships are awarded each year to a select number of students in their final year of study to enable them to devote full-time effort to dissertation research and writing.

Hughes is an exercise physiology student pursuing research in identifying modifiable and hormonal risk factors for osteoporosis in older men. Moira Petit, Ph.D, associate professor, serves as Hughes' adviser.

Posted by Marta Fahrenz at 1:53 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Nickie Chang, Ph. D., Michael Wade, Ph.D., professor in Kinesiology, and Tom Stoffregen, Ph.D., professor in Kinesiology, have a recent paper to be published in the Journal of Motor Behavior. Chang is a former School of Kinesiology Ph.D. student. Wade served as Chang's adviser.

Chang, C.-H., Wade, M. G., & Stoffregen, T. A. (2009). Perceiving affordances for aperture passage in an environment-person-person system. Journal of Motor Behavior, in press.

Posted by John Brian Becker at 11:49 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Dr. Art Leon, professor in Kinesiology, and his former student Ulf Bronas, Ph.D., research associate in the School of Nursing, have had their article, "Hypertension: Lifestyle Modifications for its Prevention and Management," accepted by the American Journal of Lifestyle Medicine. The article is the centerpiece of the journal's issue on "Lifestyle Management of High Blood Pressure." The journal's reviewer commented, "It is, in a word, 'superb.' The manuscript does exactly what I hoped for--which is provide in one comprehensive review the scientific basis for why lifestyle interventions are so effective both in helping to prevent and manage high blood pressure."

The manuscript will be published in the November-December 2009 issue.

Posted by Marta Fahrenz at 3:27 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Tommy Valentini, doctoral student in sport and exercise psychology and advisee of Nicole LaVoi, Tucker Center associate director, will be the Head Men's Tennis Coach at Gustavus Adolphus College starting fall of 2009. Valentini will take the helm from Steve Wilkinson who is retiring from coaching after 39 years. Valentini will also help run the popular Tennis & Life Camps at Gustavus. Congratulations!

Posted by Jonathan Sweet at 4:16 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

The Laboratory of Musculoskeletal Health (Moira Petit, Ph.D., lab director) has had an active and eventful year. Several Kinesiology Ph.D. students presented posters or oral presentations at the American Society of Bone and Mineral Research meeting last fall, including: Susan Novotny (oral presentation and poster), Kristy Popp, Amanda Thieschafer, Julie Hughes (plenary poster), and Sue Lynn Peart. Beth Kaufman and Julie Cousins will be presenting their work at the American College of Sport Medicine (ACSM) meeting in Seattle this May.

Dr. Petit also received a grant from the MN Obesity Consortium for the study “Bone and cardiovascular health in obese adolescents following bariatric surgery.” Ph.D. students Lesley Scibora and Susan Novotny did much of the writing for that grant.

Three UROP students worked in the lab this past semester: Christopher Winkler, Robin Spoehr, and Alyssa Kurkoski. Patrick Hughes was awarded a UROP to work in our lab this summer.

Below are recently published or accepted manuscripts (Kinesiology students and faculty in bold):

Wetzsteon RJ, Petit MA, Macdonald HM, Hughes JM, Beck TJ, McKay HA. Bone structure and volumetric BMD in overweight children: a longitudinal study. Journal of Bone and Mineral Research 2008 Dec;23(12):1946-53.

Wetzsteon RJ, Hughes JM, Kaufman BC, Vazquez G, Stoffregen TA, Stovitz SD, Petit MA. Ethnic differences in bone strength are apparent in childhood. Bone, In Press 2009.

Petit MA, Paudel ML, Taylor BC, Hughes JM, Strotmeyer ES, Schwartz AV, Cauley JA, Zmuda JM, Hoffman AR, Ensrud KE. Bone mass and strength in older men with type 2 diabetes: the osteoporotic fractures in men study. Journal of Bone and Mineral Research. Accepted 2009.

Singh JA, Schmitz KH, Petit MA. Effect of resistance exercise on bone mineral density in premenopausal women. Joint Bone Spine. 2009 Feb 12. [Epub ahead of print]

Thieschafer AJ, Hughes JM, Popp KL, Wetzsteon RJ, Stovitz SD, Kaufman BC, Kurzer MS, Petit MA. Bone volumetric density, geometry, and strength in female and male collegiate runners. Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise. Accepted, 2009.

Popp KL, Hughes JM, Thieschafer AJ, Novotny SA, Stovitz SD, Koehler S, Petit MA. Bone geometry, strength, and muscle mass in runners with a history of stress fracture. Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise. Accepted, 2009.

Beck TJ, Petit MA, Wu G, Leboff MS, Cauley JA, Chen Z. Does Obesity Really Make the Femur Stronger? Bone Mineral Density, Geometry and Fracture Incidence in the Women's Health Initiative-Observational Study. Journal of Bone and Mineral Research 2009 Mar 17. [Epub ahead of print]

Posted by Marta Fahrenz at 2:01 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Chelsey Thul, research assistant in Kinesiology, gave a workshop titled Reducing Physical Inactivity and Promoting Active Living: From the Voices of East African Adolescent Girls on Tuesday, April 21, 2009 at the 2009 Girls Coalition of Minnesota's Annual Conference.

Posted by Austin Stair Calhoun at 11:41 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Several members of the School of Kinesiology and the Tucker Center participated in this year's College of Education and Human Development Research Day poster displays on March 24.

Chelsea Thul, Ph.D. student in sport and exercise psychology and research assistant at the Tucker Center, Jill Haom, B.S. student in kinesiology and former intern at the Tucker Center, and Nicole LaVoi, Ph.D., lecturer and Tucker Center associate director, presented their poster "Reducing Physical Inactivity and Promoting Active Living: From the Voices of East African Adolescent Girls" [abstract | poster]; Lisa Kihl, Ph.D., assistant professor, and Diane Wiese-Bjornstal, Ph.D., associate professor, presented "Safe or Out: Using Community Action Research to Transform the Environment for Youth Baseball at an Urban Recreation Center" [abstract | poster]; and Tom Smith, Ph.D., research associate, presented his poster "The Ergonomics of Learning - The Design of the Learning Environment is Key to Student Learning Performance" [abstract | poster].

Chelsea Thul	Jill Haom	Nicole LaVoi	Lisa Kihl	Diane Wiese-Bjornstal	Tom Smith

Posted by Jonathan Sweet at 11:32 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Austin Calhoun, Ph.D. student and Tucker Center research assistant, presented a poster, "Examining Online Intercollegiate Head Coaches' Biographies: Reproducing or Challenging Heteronormativity and Heterosexism?" [abstract | poster] at the Sport, Sexuality, and Culture Conference, in Ithaca, NY, March 18-20, 2009. The poster was done in collaboration with Nicole LaVoi, Ph.D., lecturer in the School of Kinesiology and Associate Director of the Tucker Center.

Posted by Jonathan Sweet at 12:34 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Doctoral student Tommy Valentini will have a chapter titled “Love-Love: A Fresh Start at Finding Value and Virtue in Tennis” in the soon-to-be-released book Tennis and Philosophy. The book is part of the Philosophy and Popular Culture series published by the University Press of Kentucky. Valentini’s chapter discusses the potential of sport to contribute to athlete moral development and the importance of a philosophy that prioritizes winning below other aspects of competition that are within an athlete’s control—namely effort, sportsmanship, and positive attitude. Valentini is advised by Nicole LaVoi, Ph.D, Associate Director of the Tucker Center.

Posted by Austin Stair Calhoun at 5:04 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Don Dengel, Ph.D., associate professor in Kinesiology, has published two articles with former graduate students Tyler Bosch (M.A. 2007), Chris Kaufman (Ph.D. 2006), Eric Williamson (M.Ed. 2002), Tom Olson (Ph.D. 2004), and Jennifer Tracy (M.A. 2006).

Bosch, T.A., Kaufman, C.L., Williamson, E.B., Duprez, D.A., & Dengel, D.R. (2009) Comparison of changes in heart rate variability and blood pressure during nitroglycerin administration and head-up tilt testing. Clinical Autonomic Research, 19, 46-50.

Olson, T.P., Tracy, J., & Dengel, D.R. (2009) Relationship between ventilatory threshold and cerebral
blood flow during maximal exercise in humans. Open Sports Medicine Journal, 3, 9-13.

Posted by Marta Fahrenz at 3:00 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Calhoun and LaVoi's Abstract Accepted to Sport, Sexuality, and Culture Conference

Austin Calhoun, PhD student and Tucker Center Research Assistant, and Dr. Nicole LaVoi, Associate Director of the Tucker Center, were accepted to present a poster at the Sport, Sexuality, and Culture Conference to be held March 18-20, 2009 in Ithaca, N.Y. The research is titled Examining Online Intercollegiate Head Coaches' Biographies: Reproducing or Challenging Heteronormativity and Heterosexism?.

Posted by Austin Stair Calhoun at 3:42 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Kristy Popp, School of Kinesiology Ph.D. student (adviser, Moira Petit), is the principal investigator on a just-awarded $2,500 National Athletic Trainers Association (NATA) survey project award titled "Bone Geometry Strength and Biomechanical Changes."

Posted by Anitra Budd at 3:28 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Don Dengel, Ph.D., assistant professor in Kinesiology, recently published an article with three of his former graduate students: Andrea Thelen (M.A., 2006), Aaron Kelly (Ph.D., 2004) and Eric Williamson (M.Ed., 2002). The article is based on Andrea's thesis.

Thelen, A.M., Kelly, A.S., Williamson, E.B., and Dengel, D.R. (2008) Examining the time course of endothelium-independent dilation by nitroglycerin. Ultrasound in Medicine & Biology, Vol. 34, No. 8, pp. 1217-1220.

Posted by Anitra Budd at 12:30 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Jens Omli, Kinesiology Ph.D. candidate, and Nicole LaVoi, Ph.D., associate director of The Tucker Center, have had their manuscript, "The perfect storm: Background anger in youth sports" accepted for publication in the Journal of Sport Behavior. Expected publication date is early 2009.

Posted by Anitra Budd at 1:34 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Frank Moe, Kinesiology Ph.D. student and Minnesota state legislator from Bemidji, has been awarded a 2008 Bush Leadership Fellowship. Frank is pursuing a Ph.D. in Education-Recreation, Park, and Leisure Studies and is advised by Professor Keith Russell.

The fellowships, presented by the Bush Foundation, support full-time academic or self-designed study in a wide range of fields including educational policy and leadership, immigrant business development, public health, ecological education and improvement, and Native American culture and language preservation. Bush Fellows include women and men in such fields as public service, education, government, health, business, engineering, architecture, science, farming, forestry, law, trade unions, law enforcement, journalism, and social work.

Congratulations Frank!

Posted by Anitra Budd at 1:13 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Two Ph.D. candidates in the School of Kinesiology, Drew Bailey and Jung Hyun Kim, have been awarded Doctoral Dissertation Fellowships for 2008-09 from the Graduate School. These competitive, prestigious, all-University fellowships are designed to support outstanding Ph.D. candidates in devoting full time to their dissertation writing and research. They carry a nine-month stipend of $22,000 plus tuition for thesis credits and/or required seminars during the academic year.

Drew Bailey, student in Education-Recreation, Park, and Leisure Studies, emphasis Outdoor Education/Recreation, is advised by Associate Professor Keith Russell. His research topic, Cultivating Wisdom through a Service-Learning Experience, explores how alternative types of education may contribute to the development of wisdom in young people. In his fellowship application, Drew writes, "If the future is plagued with conflict, the instability is not something that exists 'out there somewhere' but a current that flows from inside individuals. To ensure both individual and social well-being, it may be necessary to not only teach students to recall facts and to think critically, but to think wisely as well."

Jung Hyun (Kenny) Kim is a Kinesiology student whose emphasis area is Exercise Physiology. He is advised by Professor Arthur Leon and Professor Victor Koscheyev. His research topic is Regulation of an Energy-Efficient Physiologically Designed Cooling Garment through a Finger Calorimeter Feedback System for Thermal Comfort During Extravehicular Activity (EVA). He is investigating optimal cooling regimes imposed by a cooling garment with participants at different modes and intensities of work as an analog for astronaut thermal comfort under different levels of exertion during EVA. A second aim of his study is to develop a physiological model of a finger calorimeter feedback system as an indicator of human thermal status while working in a protective garment. Kenny writes, "This research will . . . help to better understand human thermoregulatory responses and provide physiological principles for designing a cooling garment."

Posted by Anitra Budd at 12:21 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)