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Dr. Mike Trevisan

Dean's Perspectives

Stronger, more unified kinesiology programs on the horizon

Dean A.G. Rud
A.G. Rud

Since becoming WSU College of Education dean in 2010, I’ve wanted our three kinesiology programs to be better integrated with the undergraduate teacher preparation program, and more generally with the health sciences at our university. But first they need to be better integrated with each other.

Faculty members have been working hard to make changes to unify and strengthen our undergraduate kinesiology programs. Those efforts will bear fruit next fall, when we’ll institute the following changes:

  • The Movement Studies Program will be renamed Sport Science and will culminate in a Bachelor of Science degree in kinesiology. Students in the Health and Fitness Program will continue to earn a teaching certificate along with their B.S. in kinesiology. Our Athletic Training Program will continue to offer a Bachelor of Arts in athletic training. 
  • Students in these programs will take common core courses: movement fundamentals, anatomy, fitness, strength training, biomechanics and exercise physiology. All course numbers will have the prefix KINES.
  • We will add a practicum and an internship program to sport science. As faculty member and student adviser Judy Schultz puts it, “we’ve been missing hands-on experience in exercise education.”
  • We’ll increase the number of course sections offered to sport science students. With increased numbers of students pursuing that specialty, we expect our kinesiology enrollment to grow from approximately 450 to 600.

Eventually, sport science students will have the option to earn certification from the American College of Sport Medicine along with their degrees. (Hint to college supporters: That depends on our purchase of the necessary equipment for the certification process.)

Our kinesiology graduates work in many settings, from public schools to exercise clubs, sports medicine clinics to corporate gyms. Many go to graduate school. We’ll keep working hard to launch their careers in the best Cougar fashion.

Thanks to Stacy Mohondro, Kelly Ward, and program faculty for their input on this post.