While most law enforcement agencies recognize the importance of physical fitness for their office... more While most law enforcement agencies recognize the importance of physical fitness for their officers and encourage them to maintain an adequate level of fitness, many find it difficult to implement a fitness program successfully. Prior studies and literature support the implementation of community-centered fitness initiatives. The purpose of this study was to (1) describe participant outcomes from the service- learning project Officer Charlie Get Fit Project and (2) delineate Kolb’s experiential learning model implemented by undergraduate kinesiology majors when applied in an exercise setting. Students were charged with working directly with police officers over an 8-week program with the goal of lowering health-risk factors for the participants. Additionally, the project provided an opportunity for students to assess their own learning style and infuse it in a real-world professional application. Participants included 16 police officers (M = 44.6, SD = 10.7 years of age) and one elected city administrative official. Paired sample t tests revealed nonsignificant differences between the pretest and posttest scores on the 10 fitness measures. Descriptive statistics revealed improvements in categories of body weight, BMI, waist circumference, hip circumference, resting heart rate, systolic blood pressure, diastolic blood pressure, sum of skinfolds, and overall body fat percentage. Participant exit interviews indicated positive qualitative results. The student reflection piece indicated that the frequent writing helped with (1) the myriad of planning and preparation issues, (2) selecting a community partner and recruiting participants, and (3) data collection and analysis. This study was an important assessment of immersive learning opportunities provided through classroom lecture and development of community partnerships.
While studies have examined the outcomes of interprofessional service-learning activities, the us... more While studies have examined the outcomes of interprofessional service-learning activities, the use of interprofessional, community-based health programming as an opportunity for fostering civic engagement in today’s public health students is less studied. This article examines the benefits of a student-run exercise and nutrition program as an interprofessional education and service experience for undergraduate students participating in a service-learning course, degree-required practicum, capstone project, volunteer experience, or internship. An online survey with items from the Volunteer Functions Inventory, Civic Attitudes Scale, and Social Responsibility subscale of the Prosocial Behavior Battery was administered to 233 students from a diverse variety of majors. A significant increase in positive civic attitudes, volunteerism, and social responsibility scores was observed for students participating as part of one of two course-based service-learning projects, and scores on all th...
In the competitive context of Division I (DI) intercollegiate sport, an unwillingness to undertak... more In the competitive context of Division I (DI) intercollegiate sport, an unwillingness to undertake change can often reflect the attitudes of complacency on the part of stakeholders, that their institution is doing an adequate job in providing the optimal experience for its student-athletes, or resignation, that they can do no more to increase success. This paper examines New State University’s, a pseudonym for a DI Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS), organizational deficit thinking. It demonstrates prevalent deficit thinking in intercollegiate athletics and offers suggestions to reframe such thinking. Schroeder’s (2010) case study cultural framework was used and the interaction of four collegiate environments examined. These were institutional culture, leadership and power, internal athletic department, and external athletic department. Data collection and triangulation analysis included 36 interviews, researcher observations, photos, archival data, and social media. The complexity of ...
International Journal of Sports Science & Coaching, 2016
Recent events in intercollegiate athletic department organizational cultures demonstrate the need... more Recent events in intercollegiate athletic department organizational cultures demonstrate the need to examine the experiences of personnel who serve in a toxic leadership culture. The purpose of this qualitative study was to identify how three head coaches, one associate athletic director, and a facilities manager perceived and reacted to 6 years of destructive leadership. Each participant was interviewed for 60–90 min. Consistent with Padilla, Hogan, and Kaiser’s (2008) toxic triangle theory, findings suggest that perceptions and reactions to the evaluated athletic department were seemingly negative. The leadership and actions of two head coaches, the athletic director, and the university president were perceived as destructive to the department and the institution. The culprits of the destructive consequences were the university’s lack of internal and external checks and balances, a president who centralized control, and an absence of effective athletic department leadership. Follo...
Recent events in intercollegiate athletic department organizational cultures demonstrate the need... more Recent events in intercollegiate athletic department organizational cultures demonstrate the need to examine the experiences of personnel who serve in a toxic leadership culture. The purpose of this qualitative study was to identify how three head coaches, one associate athletic director, and a facilities manager perceived and reacted to 6 years of destructive leadership. Each participant was interviewed for 60–90 min. Consistent with Padilla, Hogan, and Kaiser's (2008) toxic triangle theory, findings suggest that perceptions and reactions to the evaluated athletic department were seemingly negative. The leadership and actions of two head coaches, the athletic director, and the university president were perceived as destructive to the department and the institution. The culprits of the destructive consequences were the university's lack of internal and external checks and balances, a president who centralized control, and an absence of effective athletic department leadership. Follower repercussions identified were avoidance of the athletic director, keeping opinions to oneself, and adherence; followers employed their strategies to avert conflict or job termination.
While most law enforcement agencies recognize the importance of physical fitness for their office... more While most law enforcement agencies recognize the importance of physical fitness for their officers and encourage them to maintain an adequate level of fitness, many find it difficult to implement a fitness program successfully. Prior studies and literature support the implementation of community-centered fitness initiatives. The purpose of this study was to (1) describe participant outcomes from the service- learning project Officer Charlie Get Fit Project and (2) delineate Kolb’s experiential learning model implemented by undergraduate kinesiology majors when applied in an exercise setting. Students were charged with working directly with police officers over an 8-week program with the goal of lowering health-risk factors for the participants. Additionally, the project provided an opportunity for students to assess their own learning style and infuse it in a real-world professional application. Participants included 16 police officers (M = 44.6, SD = 10.7 years of age) and one elected city administrative official. Paired sample t tests revealed nonsignificant differences between the pretest and posttest scores on the 10 fitness measures. Descriptive statistics revealed improvements in categories of body weight, BMI, waist circumference, hip circumference, resting heart rate, systolic blood pressure, diastolic blood pressure, sum of skinfolds, and overall body fat percentage. Participant exit interviews indicated positive qualitative results. The student reflection piece indicated that the frequent writing helped with (1) the myriad of planning and preparation issues, (2) selecting a community partner and recruiting participants, and (3) data collection and analysis. This study was an important assessment of immersive learning opportunities provided through classroom lecture and development of community partnerships.
While studies have examined the outcomes of interprofessional service-learning activities, the us... more While studies have examined the outcomes of interprofessional service-learning activities, the use of interprofessional, community-based health programming as an opportunity for fostering civic engagement in today’s public health students is less studied. This article examines the benefits of a student-run exercise and nutrition program as an interprofessional education and service experience for undergraduate students participating in a service-learning course, degree-required practicum, capstone project, volunteer experience, or internship. An online survey with items from the Volunteer Functions Inventory, Civic Attitudes Scale, and Social Responsibility subscale of the Prosocial Behavior Battery was administered to 233 students from a diverse variety of majors. A significant increase in positive civic attitudes, volunteerism, and social responsibility scores was observed for students participating as part of one of two course-based service-learning projects, and scores on all th...
In the competitive context of Division I (DI) intercollegiate sport, an unwillingness to undertak... more In the competitive context of Division I (DI) intercollegiate sport, an unwillingness to undertake change can often reflect the attitudes of complacency on the part of stakeholders, that their institution is doing an adequate job in providing the optimal experience for its student-athletes, or resignation, that they can do no more to increase success. This paper examines New State University’s, a pseudonym for a DI Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS), organizational deficit thinking. It demonstrates prevalent deficit thinking in intercollegiate athletics and offers suggestions to reframe such thinking. Schroeder’s (2010) case study cultural framework was used and the interaction of four collegiate environments examined. These were institutional culture, leadership and power, internal athletic department, and external athletic department. Data collection and triangulation analysis included 36 interviews, researcher observations, photos, archival data, and social media. The complexity of ...
International Journal of Sports Science & Coaching, 2016
Recent events in intercollegiate athletic department organizational cultures demonstrate the need... more Recent events in intercollegiate athletic department organizational cultures demonstrate the need to examine the experiences of personnel who serve in a toxic leadership culture. The purpose of this qualitative study was to identify how three head coaches, one associate athletic director, and a facilities manager perceived and reacted to 6 years of destructive leadership. Each participant was interviewed for 60–90 min. Consistent with Padilla, Hogan, and Kaiser’s (2008) toxic triangle theory, findings suggest that perceptions and reactions to the evaluated athletic department were seemingly negative. The leadership and actions of two head coaches, the athletic director, and the university president were perceived as destructive to the department and the institution. The culprits of the destructive consequences were the university’s lack of internal and external checks and balances, a president who centralized control, and an absence of effective athletic department leadership. Follo...
Recent events in intercollegiate athletic department organizational cultures demonstrate the need... more Recent events in intercollegiate athletic department organizational cultures demonstrate the need to examine the experiences of personnel who serve in a toxic leadership culture. The purpose of this qualitative study was to identify how three head coaches, one associate athletic director, and a facilities manager perceived and reacted to 6 years of destructive leadership. Each participant was interviewed for 60–90 min. Consistent with Padilla, Hogan, and Kaiser's (2008) toxic triangle theory, findings suggest that perceptions and reactions to the evaluated athletic department were seemingly negative. The leadership and actions of two head coaches, the athletic director, and the university president were perceived as destructive to the department and the institution. The culprits of the destructive consequences were the university's lack of internal and external checks and balances, a president who centralized control, and an absence of effective athletic department leadership. Follower repercussions identified were avoidance of the athletic director, keeping opinions to oneself, and adherence; followers employed their strategies to avert conflict or job termination.
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Papers by Shannon Powers