Press Release

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

SHAPE America Announces 2017 Research Fellows

RESTON, VA, February 21, 2017 — Darla Castelli, chair of the Research Council of SHAPE America – Society of Health and Physical Educators, today announced its class of 2017 Research Fellows. This year's Fellows will be honored at the 132nd SHAPE America National Convention& Expo in Boston, March 14-18. They are:

• Tiago Barreira, Syracuse University, NY
• Ali Brian, University of South Carolina
• Eloise Elliott, West Virginia University
• Jennifer Walton-Fisette, Kent State University, OH
• Xiangli Gu, University of North Texas
• Justin Haegele, Old Dominion University, VA
• Samuel Logan, Oregon State University
• Elizabeth Mullin, Springfield College, MA
• Zi Yan, Merrimack College, MA

"SHAPE America Research Fellow status is reserved for members who have made significant and sustained contributions to research, creative or scholarly activity, as well as related service," says Castelli. "The purpose of Fellow status is to promote scholarship as an integral component of SHAPE America, recognize research accomplishments by our members, and promote participation in the research activities of the organization." 

Since SHAPE America first began honoring select members as Research Fellows in 1950, a total of 342 individuals have received the distinction. This new class now brings our members to 351. The organization's first selectee was John Miller Cooper, an award-winning researcher, author and educator in the field of kinesiology. In addition, many basketball scholars consider Cooper to be the originator of the sport's "jump shot." NCAA archives show that the three-second rule was introduced in 1933 because Cooper – then a star athlete at the University of Missouri – would "plant himself in the free throw lane and wait to shoot a jump shot over the defense."  

Chairing the selection process this year was Peter Hastie, Auburn University, with committee members: David Stodden, University of South Carolina, Timothy Brusseau, The University of Utah, Insook Kim, Kent State University, Bomna Ko, East Carolina University and Collin Webster, University of South Carolina.

The 2017 Research Fellows will be honored on March 16th at the annual C.H. McCloy Research Lecture and Breakfast. This event provides a forum for a distinguished leader in the SHAPE America disciplines to present cutting-edge research findings of interest to researchers and practitioners alike. This year's lecturer is Greg Welk, professor, Iowa State University. His lecture is titled: "The Intersections of Science and Practice: Examples from FitnessGram Programming." The lecture and breakfast is sponsored by Ergotron, Inc., a global manufacturer of leading digital display mounting, furniture, and mobility products that have been improving the human interface with digital displays for 35 years, and Taylor& Francis Group, one of the world's leading publishers of scholarly journals, books, eBooks, text books and reference works.

At the breakfast, Phillip Ward of The Ohio State University will receive the Research Council Distinguished Service Award. The Graduate Student Research Award will be presented to Zachary Pope, University of Minnesota, and the Undergraduate Student Research Awards will go to Connor Herlihy, Kutztown University of Pennsylvania, and Amanda Yessick, Old Dominion University, VA.  

Current members of the SHAPE America Research Council include: David Stodden, University of South Carolina, Bryan McCullick, University of Georgia; Hans van der Mars, Arizona State University; Peter Hastie, Auburn University; Kim Graber, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign; Shrehan Lynch, The University of Alabama; Phillip Ward, The Ohio State University; and Darla Castelli, University of Texas at Austin.  

At the national convention the Research Council is also hosting a session titled, "Learning from the Past, Making History" which will be a historical perspective of SHAPE America and its research disciplines followed by a discussion about the future. This session will include research and discussion by SHAPE America members Hans van der Mars, Missy Parker and Kevin Patton.Russ Pate of the University of South Carolina will present the "U.S. Report Card on Physical Activity in Children and Youth" while CDC Health Scientist Shannon Michael discusses the "Report on Secular Changes in Physical Education Attendance in the U.S." and Christina Economos, associate professor, Tufts University, presents "Best Practices in School District-Wide Efforts to Promote Students' Physical Activity."

For more information about SHAPE America's National Convention & Expo, visit the website and follow #SHAPEBoston.  

About Charles McCloy
SHAPE America's annual C.H. McCloy Research Lecture and Breakfast serves as a continuing memorial to Charles H. McCloy, Ph.D. (1886–1959), one of the great pioneer scientists and leaders of the profession. McCloy was a prolific scholar and an early proponent of physical education. With 32 books, three government reports and more than 290 articles to his credit, his contributions are vast and recognized around the world, a particularly rare accomplishment during his era. He served as president of the American Association for Health and Physical Education (now known as SHAPE America), from 1937–1938, and was the first person to receive the organization's Luther H. Gulick Award (1944). His final journal article, "Half-Century of Physical Education," was published posthumously in 1960 in The Physical Educator.

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