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Bridging The Gap: Promoting Faculty Diversity to Align With Student Demographics

Moh H. Malek, Melissa A. Mache, Gerald J. Jerome, Matthew W. Miller, and Christopher A. Aiken

In many kinesiology and health care science departments in the United States, there is a mismatch between the demographic composition of the student population and the faculty cohort. That is, although student populations are more diverse, the faculty cohort does not reflect this same diversity. The purpose of this paper is threefold: (a) Provide background information on the faculty–student mismatch, (b) discuss reactive strategies to increase diversity among a faculty cohort, and (c) discuss proactive strategies to increase diversity among a faculty cohort. Our approach is pragmatic and concise, which will give the reader various strategies they can incorporate to increase diversity in their faculty cohort.

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An Imperfect List of Eminent Sport and Exercise Psychology Researchers

Allison Smolinski, Olivia McIntyre, Drew Martin, and Jeffrey J. Martin

The purpose of the present study was to identify eminent sport and exercise psychology researchers, based on citation count, and their most highly cited papers. Men (n = 121) and women (n = 32) from 17 different countries (e.g., the United States n = 47 to Ireland n = 1) were identified. Researchers were selected if their h-index was 60 or greater for Google Scholar and Web of Science combined. This criterion reflects Hirsch’s (2005) characterization as follows based on h-index: a successful scientist (20), an outstanding scientist (40), and truly unique (60), for one database. Our criteria of 60 for two databases are equivalent to a designation halfway between successful and outstanding. The results indicate an h-index mean of 103, median of 94, mode of 105, and range of 60–346. Top-cited publications leaned toward more sport psychology than exercise psychology topics. Prominent journals included the Journal of Sport and Exercise Psychology (n = 24) and Psychology of Sport and Exercise (n = 15). Other publications were in related fields (e.g., Psychology and Health). In summary, we have identified the most highly cited researchers in sport and exercise psychology and their single most-cited papers. We hope this information is of both heuristic and practical value to readers.

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Science Communication in Kinesiology: Examples for Engaging Students

Steven J. Elmer

Scientists have a responsibility to engage with and inform the public about new challenges and discoveries that impact the health of society. However, most scientists do not have formal training in how to communicate scientific information to nonscientists. In this paper, I describe how the Department of Kinesiology and Integrative Physiology at Michigan Technological University incorporated science communication into its undergraduate and graduate curriculum. I also discuss the impact, benefits, and lessons learned from this initiative. My hope is that this paper will inspire other kinesiology programs to provide distinct opportunities for their students to develop science communication skills so that they can better connect with the public and world around them.

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Social Justice in Practice—Integrating Ethical Leadership, Inclusive Excellence, and Community Engagement in the Undergraduate Kinesiology Curriculum

Jeffrey Cherubini

Creating opportunities for undergraduate students’ personal and professional development including advocacy for social justice is a relevant topic for kinesiology faculty and administrators. Utilizing a multidisciplinary approach to promote self-awareness, behavior change, and social justice in kinesiology, the purpose of this article is to share and discuss high-impact practices and strategies to infuse ethical leadership, inclusive excellence, and community engagement within the kinesiology curriculum. Principles from kinesiology, public health, sport psychology, leadership studies, pedagogy, and human resources are integrated to help kinesiology faculty facilitate and enhance students’ future professional practices. Frameworks for behavior change for social justice in kinesiology include the decolonizing kinesiology ethics, inclusive excellence, stages of change, and effective communication. Readers are encouraged to “take back to their departments” practices and strategies that can be further modified and integrated into their own kinesiology curriculum.

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Amplifying Student Viewpoints on Inclusive Student Experiences for Inclusive Excellence in Kinesiology

DeAnne Davis Brooks, Helen Yolisa Duley, Laura M. Pipe, Carla C. Fullwood, and Christopher A. Aiken

The purpose of this paper is to share how the American Kinesiology Association’s Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Committee envisioned, planned, and created an opportunity to show how inclusive excellence can be implemented as a strategy for transformation and change. This was achieved by listening to and intentionally responding with positive outcomes to students who voice their lived experiences in an institution of higher education. The Viewpoints on Inclusive Student Experiences (VOISES) model of student/faculty engagement is explained, along with reflections from two faculty members who participated in VOISES panels—one as an audience member and the other as a panel moderator. The discussion includes suggestions for incorporating student voices generally and the VOISES model specifically as part of a comprehensive diversity, equity, and inclusion strategy.

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Catalyzing Inclusive Excellence: Transformative Practices of Auburn University’s School of Kinesiology

Matthew W. Miller, Christopher M. Wilburn, Harsimran S. Baweja, Mary E. Rudisill, and Jared A. Russell

The School of Kinesiology (KINE) at Auburn University (AU) has demonstrated exemplary commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion, earning the 2024 American Kinesiology Association’s Inclusive Excellence Award. This article describes the strategic planning and actions taken by AU KINE over more than a decade to promote inclusive excellence by enhancing diversity and fostering inclusion. The article discusses how AU KINE overcame challenges, such as misconceptions about diversity initiatives, and how the unit continues to evolve, including developing an inclusive Doctor of Physical Therapy program. Throughout the process, AU KINE has aligned its diversity and inclusion mission and goals with the broader institution. The authors aim to demystify the process of creating a more diverse and inclusive kinesiology department and offer insights for other programs seeking to enhance their diversity and inclusion efforts. AU KINE’s success demonstrates the transformative power of strategic, sustained initiatives to promote inclusive excellence in kinesiology.

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Preparing Future Change Agents: A Commitment to Social Justice

Shawn Ladda

The 2024 American Kinesiology Association Undergraduate Education Network session included a keynote address titled “Preparing Future Change Agents: A Commitment to Social Justice.” From my lived experience, I learned much from being marginalized as a female athlete. Through reflecting on these experiences and my formal education, the question asked was, What were those pivotal experiences that developed attitudes and values toward all-consuming social justice? Besides having parents who reinforced that one can do anything they set their mind to do, living across the country and learning the value of diversity and having educationally impactful experiences in the “world classroom” had a huge impact on my valuing diversity. From my formal educational experiences, I remember few lecture-type classes. Content knowledge is important, but the more impactful classes and experiences were experiential and hands-on. The following are my reflections and recommendations for preparing future change agents.

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Perceptions of Parents of Children With Disabilities Toward Physical Education: A Systematic Review

Adam S. Forbes, Fabián Arroyo-Rojas, and Martin E. Block

Physical education (PE) has a unique opportunity in not only supporting children with disabilities but also their parents’ physical-activity knowledge and support behaviors. Therefore, the purpose of this systematic literature review was to synthesize published studies regarding parent perspectives toward physical education (PE) for their children with disabilities. A total of 19 articles met inclusion criteria. Three themes emerged: (a) parents’ understanding of adapted PE (A/PE), (b) parents’ expectations of A/PE teachers, and (c) parents’ undeveloped relationships with A/PE teachers. There exists a disconnection between parent expectations and PE teachers’ abilities to accommodate their children and develop lines of communication. Additionally, parental value toward PE was often lower compared with other areas of need for their children. Future research suggests exploring teacher perspectives in understanding the relationships with parents. Furthermore, exploring the origins of parental values for PE and its impact on their perspectives warrants further investigation.

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The Gridiron’s Ethical Striping: Threads of Tackle Football’s Moral Permissibility

Francisco Javier López Frías

In this paper, I examine the ethical landscape surrounding tackle football, exploring the moral permissibility of the sport and the myriad ethical considerations it entails. This examination comprises the use of an ethical decision-making framework to analyze four key aspects: relevant empirical facts, affected parties, salient moral values/disvalues, and potential options. In pondering these aspects, I identify the ethical conflicts arising from factual disagreements, conflicting interests, and divergent values/disvalues concerning players’ decision to partake in gridiron football. In addition to emphasizing the importance of understanding and addressing such aspects and conflicts to devise potential solutions, I contend that ethical issues related to the permissibility of football ultimately stem from value-related conflicts, highlighting the necessity of examining and reconciling conflicting moral principles.

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Whose Helmet? Reconsidering American Football’s Iconic Equipment

Noah Cohan

In this project, I examine the manner in which fans and players of American football understand the plastic safety helmet. My findings are built on a series of qualitative interviews conducted with helmet aficionados and former players. While conventional wisdom would suggest that the protective purpose is the primary function of the helmet, I demonstrate that in practice it is secondary. The foremost service of the helmet is to convey meaning through team, regional, aesthetic, and branding signifiers, which shape how individuals affiliate themselves with the game, form their fan or player identity, and consume football and football equipment. Although they do so in different ways, both groups, players and aficionados, fetishize the object; exemplifying the way in which masculinity and materiality have become intertwined in the game of football, such that the helmet functions as an abstract avatar of heteronormative manliness.