Dr. Alan Walker, assistant professor of exercise science, recently had a co-authored paper accepted for publication in the Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research. Dr. Walker published the paper, “Power, Endurance, and Body Composition Changes over a Collegiate Career in NCAA Division I Women’s Soccer Athletes,” with co-authors Dr. Bridget McFadden (assistant professor, Queens College), Dr. Brittany Bozzini (coordinator of performance services, Kansas City Royals), Dr. Harry Cintineo (assistant professor, Lindenwood University), Dr. Samuel Hills (lecturer, Bournemouth University), Alexa Chandler (graduate student, University of Arizona), Dr. David Sanders (assistant professor, Loyola University Chicago), Dr. Mark Russell (researcher, Leeds Trinity University), and Dr. Shawn Arent (chair and professor, University of South Carolina).

Nine athletic training, exercise science, and physical therapy majors helped run the annual fitness challenge during the Nov. 4—5 Mid-Atlantic Chapter for the American College of Sports Medicine regional conference. Dr. Alan Walker, assistant professor of exercise science, annually runs the fitness challenge that has students from numerous colleges and universities compete for a trophy. Alana Antonello ’24, Madi Armstrong ’24, Jacob Bollinger ’24, Danielle Holmes ’24, Elizabeth Leedy ’22, M’23, Cole Lehman ’24, Sorrell Long ’24, Rylee Stahl ’24, and Connor Williams ’23 ran the fitness stations and put the competitors through the challenges. Gabriel Pigeon ’24, Logan Satti ’24, Philip Shemyakin ’24, Rachel Snavely ’24, and Megan Strodoski ’24 also attended the conference.

Dr. Claudia Gazsi, chair of exercise science, graduate program director, and associate professor of physical therapy, announced that the Exercise Science Department achieved Initial Accreditation for the College’s undergraduate and Clinical Exercise Physiology programs by the Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs.  

Dr. Gabriella McEvoy, chair of languages and professor of Spanish, joined two students in Puerto Rico during spring break to present their research at the XXIX Congreso Internacional de Literatura y Estudios Hispánicos in San Juan, Puerto Rico. 

Julia Resele ’22, early childhood, special education, and Spanish, presented “Mercedes Gallagher de Parks: A Hidden Gem in the Peruvian Feminist Movement,” and Grace Parks ’21, D’23, exercise science, physical therapy, and Spanish, presented “Effects of World War II through the perspective of the Peruvian intellectual, Mercedes Gallagher de Parks.” Their research projects were developed with Dr. McEvoy as part of her current research and work done in her Latin American Cultures class and will be published as a book next year.

Dr. Alan Walker’s, assistant professor of exercise science, paper “Assessment of Sports Nutrition Knowledge, Dietary Practices, and Sources of Information in NCAA Division III Collegiate Athletics,” was published in the national journal “Nutrients.” Dr. Walker co-authored the article with colleagues from four other universities.

Dr. Eva Frank, assistant professor of athletic training; Emily Stratton ’19, D’21; Jacob Dgien ’19, D’21; Lindsey Topper ’21; Dr. Marcia Epler, associate professor of physical therapy; and Dr. Robert Creath, associate professor of exercise science and director of the Lewis Human Performance Lab, presented COVID-19 Quarantine: Impact on Functional Mobility and Pain in Older Adults at the Pennsylvania Athletic Trainers’ Society Virtual Convention, June 12.

Benjamin Hinkley ’21, Aaron Tranquillo ’19, D’21, Veronica Venezia ’21, Niclas Sharp ’21, and Dr. Robert Creath will present Simulating Hip Stiffness in Healthy Adults during Quiet Standing by Use of a Hip and Knee Brace: Preliminary Results, at the American Society of Biomechanics Annual Meeting in August 2021. Dr. Creath is an associate professor of exercise science, director of the Lewis Human Performance Lab, and a member of the American Society of Biomechanics. 

Dr. Diego Ferreira, assistant professor of exercise science, presented a poster, “Variability of individual response to whole-body vibration and treadmill walking in ambulatory children with cerebral palsy,” at the American Congress of Rehabilitation Virtual Conference. He also presented two additional posters, “Effects of body position and external load on knee joint kinematics and muscle activity in healthy young adults during the pendulum test,” and “Acute effects of whole-body vibration on stair ascent in children with Down syndrome,” at the American Society of Biomechanics annual meeting in Atlanta, Ga. 

Dr. Alan Walker, assistant professor of exercise science, had eight exercise science majors attend the Mid-Atlantic Regional Conference for the American College of Sports Medicine in CITY/ST, with him earlier this month. The students— Courtney Betsock ’21, Stephanie Jones ’20, Samuel Miller ’20, Ethan Hurd ’21, Madeleine Brown ’21, Kirstyn McNamara ’21, Shelby Hoke ’21, and Morgan Menges ’21—learned from experts in the field and helped Walker administer a fitness challenge for attending students to represent their respective institutions and compete for a trophy as the fittest school. The LVC octet aided Walker by running various fitness tests and judging the competition.

Dr. Alan Walker, assistant professor of exercise science, recently co-authored three research publications, including a pair in The Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research. His published research focused on Biomarker Response to a Competitive Season in Division I Female Soccer Players, Running Economy and its Correlation to Performance and Fitness Variables in Recreationally-Trained Distance Runners, and Contextual Factors Influencing External and Internal Training Loads in Collegiate Men’s Soccer.