2012 Research Consortium President-elect Candidates
Darla M. Castelli, Ph.D.
Associate Professor
The University of Texas at Austin
Biography:
Dr. Castelli is currently an associate professor and graduate advisor in the Department of Kinesiology and Health Education at The University of Texas at Austin. She earned her PhD in physical education pedagogy at the University of South Carolina in 2002 and was previously a faculty member at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Dr. Castelli is a Research Consortium (RC) fellow and has been a reviewer for the annual program (pedagogy and physical activity epidemiology) and grant program (2003-present). Dr. Castelli has served on the RC ethics committee and as an invited speaker for the RC webinar. Since becoming an AAHPERD member she has fulfilled many capacities: chair of NASPE's Curriculum and Instruction Academy (2009-11); co-chair of the NASPE Director of Physical Activity task force; member of the NASPE PE2020 task force (2010- present); and member of the PETE conference planning committee (2005-2006). Dr. Castelli is well connected with many other professional organizations as evidenced by her role as the program chair of the Research on Learning and Instruction in Physical Education SIG of American Educational Research Association (2010- present); member of the CDC Physical Activity Implementation committee (2010-present); and member of the Institute of Medicine Youth Fitness committee (2011-present). As a scholar, the National Institutes of Health, U.S. Department of Education, American Dietetic Association, NASPE, and Robert Wood Johnson Foundation have funded her work. She was among the first to study the effects of physical activity on cognitive performance in children and with her co-authors published a randomized controlled trial, suggesting that improved aerobic fitness causes increased allocation of working memory and improved behavioral responses on cognitive tasks. She has published over 40 articles and conducted 38 invited presentations and an additional 56 peer-reviewed oral presentations. She has testified in U.S. Senate and U.S. Congressional briefings regarding academic achievement and physical activity. Recently, she delivered a keynote address in Washington, DC, as advocacy for the Lets Move in School Initiative. Her research has been published in Preventive Medicine, Developmental Cognitive Neuroscience, Journal of Exercise & Sports Science, Medicine and Science in Sport and Exercise, Journal of Teaching in Physical Education, and Research Quarterly for Exercise and Sport. Dr. Castelli currently serves on the Journal of Teaching in Physical Education editorial board. Additionally, she has been a reviewer for JAMA, Journal of Physical Activity and Health, European Physical Education Review, Quest, Preventive Medicine, and Pediatrics.
Dr. Castelli's Vision for the Research Consortium:
The Research Consortium (RC) is an organization for translational, transdisciplinary, and team oriented science to be fostered. During this time of restructuring, it is imperative that the RC president has a vision that cultivates such collaborations, while establishing a place in public health and sport through the provision of empirical evidence and policy. If elected, I will work to:
- Advance transdisiplinary collaborations beyond academia to include government, industry, and other professional organizations to promote unique research opportunities and funding.
- Create a network of individuals to identify scientific opportunities worth pursuing as a means of shaping how we teach, learn, play, change behavior, and prevent disease.
- Enhance translational research skills and career development in scholars through workshops, mentoring, and advanced technology (i.e., webinars, online learning platforms, RSS feeds, social networks, repositories, and interactive tools).
- Acknowledge research excellence and disseminate these efforts to a global audience.
Unlike other organizations in AAHPERD, the RC is uniquely positioned to empirically address quality of life and health issues across the lifespan. As part of the process of change, the RC president should someone who is proactive in preserving and advancing its mission.
Kim C. Graber, Ed.D.
Associate Professor
University of Illinois
Biography:
Dr. Kim C. Graber is an associate professor and associate head in the Department of Kinesiology and Community Health at the University of Illinois. She was named a University of Illinois Distinguished Teacher/Scholar in 2006. Dr. Graber received her B.S. from the University of Iowa in 1979, her M.A. from Teachers College Columbia University in 1981, and her Ed.D. from the University of Massachusetts at Amherst in 1988. Recently, she was a visiting lecturer at the University of the West Indies. Her research interests include children's wellness, teacher education, and the scholarship of teaching and learning. She has authored over 50 chapters/articles, presented at more than 100 national and international conferences, edited two monographs, co-authored three books as a member of the NASPE Assessment Task Force, edited two special features, and co-authored a recently published textbook on physical education and physical activity in elementary schools. She wrote the invited chapter for the Handbook of Research on Teaching (4th ed.) and has also published in numerous journals including the Journal of Teaching in Physical Education (JTPE), Research Quarterly for Exercise and Sport, Teaching and Teacher Education, Elementary School Journal, and Journal of Allied Health. Dr. Graber is a member of the review boards for JTPE and Quest and is a reviewer for many additional journals. She has been an AAHPERD member for 24 years and was inducted as a Research Consortium Fellow in 1998. Dr. Graber chaired the Research Consortium Grants Committee and the Credentials Committee, and she has served as secretary of the Research Consortium. She has served as president of the National Association for Sport and Physical Education and chair of the Curriculum and Instruction Academy. In addition, she has been a member of the AAHPERD Nominating Committee and the NASPE Finance, Awards, Executive, and Conference Planning Committees.
Dr. Graber's Vision for the Research Consortium:
With the likely restructuring of AAHPERD, it is imperative that the RC remains a vital and vibrant presence in the overall organization. My vision is that the RC will continue to lead the research endeavors of the Alliance by providing leadership, mentorship, grant support, and direction to both junior and senior scholars in the field. This can be accomplished by:
- Continued support and expansion of the RC Toolkit and Webinar education series,
- Providing venues in which cutting-edge research is presented and published,
- Developing a mentoring program that pairs experienced scholars with those newer to the profession,
- Promoting members for awards both within and outside of the RC,
- Actively advertising research completed by members that has led to new discoveries and innovations, and
- Supporting the efforts of all scholars through increased levels of grant funding.
If we are to be successful, we will need to increase the amount of our permanent investments by creatively seeking support from corporate donors and those able to make a large financial commitment to further the research mission of the Alliance. In order to remain viable and prominent, we must proactively partner with other organizations whose mission it is to increase knowledge in the health-related fields and create a more visible presence at the federal level for establishing policy that is grounded in our research. Finally, we must uphold the highest ethical standards, be socially responsible, disseminate research in a way that is useful to both researchers and practitioners, and cultivate the efforts of new scholars and graduate students who will become our next generation of leaders.
