Departmental Periodic Program Review AY 2020-2021
Kinesiology Program
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
This section should be written last and will be no more than one-two pages in length. It should be an accurate summary (including briefly: program strengths, weaknesses and opportunities; curriculum improvements/opportunities and assessment of student learning information). These executive summaries are used in the Operation Plan, therefore, they should be a comprehensive program overview.
- What are the assessment results, descriptively? How have these results supported continuous improvement in student learning?
- Illustrate how the strengths of the program have had an impact on students’ personal, academic, and professional development?
- Provide a brief statement on potential needs or resources, and impact on the effectiveness (and potentially, the innovation) of the program? How will these help meet the program’s goals?
- What improvements have been made since the last PPR?
- How is the program’s strategy/approach inclusive and equity-oriented?
The Kinesiology major is an excellent program offering a multidisciplinary, balanced, and comprehensive curriculum that focuses on the study of physical activity and human movement across the lifespan. It is intended for students who desire greater flexibility in choosing courses related to the study of physical activity and human movement, but are not interested in a specific professional major. The Kinesiology major prepares students for graduate work in a specific discipline or degree program associated with the natural sciences, social sciences, humanities of physical activity and human movement, or allied health fields, or to pursue careers in fitness or sport development. In addition to its cutting- edge curriculum, the Kinesiology major is delivered by outstanding faculty who are passionate about teaching, have active research agendas, and are strong service providers to their Department, School, University, profession, and communities. Through their zeal, commitment, and loyalty, the Kinesiology major faculty contribute vigorously to the mission, vision, and goals of the Department of Kinesiology, Sport Studies and Physical Education (KSSPE); the School of Education, Health and Human Services; and the University.
Relevant student learning is a paramount concern for the Kinesiology major. To that end, its faculty keep the knowledge and skills content of the curriculum in line with the latest disciplinary trends as well as with the changing global employment requirements.
Furthermore, the experiential learning required in the Kinesiology major curriculum represents another of its strengths. Such learning provides practical and individualized experience to students prior to pursuing graduate work or entering the job market.
Examples of experiential learning include, research and laboratory work in many courses, and the involvement in advance practice in different forms of physical activity. Of note is the requirement of a practicum (a recent development in the Kinesiology major), a culminating experience consisting of a minimum of 90 hours in a setting chosen by students in consultation with the Kinesiology practicum coordinator.
The Kinesiology major has shown steady progress since the previous Periodic Program Review (PPR), submitted in March 2014. Students benefit from experienced faculty with a broad range of expertise and interests. The Kinesiology major offers diversified learning experiences in the classroom, as highlighted by Collaborative Online International Learning (COIL) course offerings. Meanwhile, necessary teaching adjustments brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic have shown that the faculty is able to quickly adjust and teach in both online and hybrid formats. New courses such as PES 300 Introduction to Kinesiology have been introduced while other core courses such as PES 305 Significance of Physical Activity, PES 439 Motor Learning, and PES 420 Biomechanics have been further developed and mastered as cornerstones for the major. In general, the Kinesiology major does not have much room to grow unless additional faculty are added. There is a possibility that a sport psychology master’s degree could be added as a program at the graduate level that would further strain faculty workload.
Enrollment in the program has been consistent over a five-year span with a slight peak in 2017. Retention and graduation rates began to stabilize toward the end of the period under review, with applications on the upswing, suggesting that the Kinesiology major has solidified itself as a worthy option in the KSSPE department. The major does not have special requirements for incoming students, making it an attractive option for students who are interested in a career involving physical activity and human movement, but unsure of the exact direction they wish to head. The Kinesiology major’s data on graduation placement among students is incomplete and inconclusive, but anecdotal evidence suggests that it gives graduates the tools needed to successfully pursue graduate work or gain employment in a broad range of kinesiology-related fields.
In the previous PPR, the Kinesiology major faculty indicated that it intended to add rigor to the curriculum and that a major improvement would be the addition of a culminating experience. The numerous changes to the curriculum implemented in the period under review demonstrate that these aims were accomplished. It is worth noting that in order to enroll in the newly implemented practicum, students are required a prerequisite 2.5 GPA in the major. The previous PPR also highlighted that there was no lab space for the motor behavior and sport psychology faculty. In the ensuing time, the old exercise physiology lab was renovated and repurposed to serve as the motor behavior and sport psychology lab.
While this a welcome development, the facilities in the Tuttle Complex, which house the Kinesiology major, are outdated and need renovation. The Kinesiology major faculty will need to continue to have space in order to retain the major’s gained progress should a building renovation occur.
Keeping in mind its strengths and challenges, the Kinesiology major should continue to collect data on program satisfaction to ensure that its curriculum remains both current and pertinent in changing local, national, and global environments. It would also be helpful to renew efforts to connect with alumni to understand how well the program prepared them for their careers. Likewise, efforts to assess student learning should continue to be a priority. With changes to the delivery of higher education coursework being accelerated by the COVID-19 pandemic, specific questions as to the effectiveness of any online learning provided by the major would also have to be included in any assessment. In short, the Kinesiology major should continue endeavoring to contribute to the University’s goal to be a great institution at which to learn by providing “an excellent educational experience to both graduate and undergraduate students that is relevant and rigorous.”
Sport Management Program
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
The SUNY Brockport Department of Kinesiology, Sport Studies, and Physical Education offers an all-encompassing curriculum in Sport Management at the undergraduate level that prepares students for entry-level positions in any number of Sport Management organizations and businesses as sport managers in a wide range of professional settings. The program provides students with opportunities to combine the formal classroom study in the management of sport, with a wealth of practical field experiences, both pre-internship and internship experiences.
The underlying principle of Brockport’s Sport Management major is that future professionals in the management of sport must be knowledgeable in the theory of management of sport and must have meaningful and productive experiences in actually performing those myriad of tasks that are associated with the management of sport organizations and business. Knowledge (educational perspective) and experience (pragmatic perspective) are essential to the Sport Management program and are also the keys to being successful as managers and administrators in the real world of sport and sport business.
The strengths of the Sport Management major are many, and include its cutting edge curriculum that incorporates a second program of study as chosen by each student, multiple practicum and internships, and a study abroad option that numerous students exercise. The Sport Management major includes internationally known faculty, whose expertise is reinforced by invitations to review programs across the world, publications including textbooks, and extraordinary teaching that includes the conscientious delivery of the curriculum to students. The SUNY Brockport Sport Management program, as one of the first in the world, was conceptualized in 1972 and continues its storied tradition with current rankings of 14th in the USA by College Choice and 9th nationally as the most affordable selective colleges for sport management. Long ahead of the current trend of experiential learning in sport management, Brockport’s Sport Management major is unique in that it requires three, sixty-hour practicums within sport organizations, and one full semester off-campus internships. Drawing from multiple pools of students, (native students, transfer students, on-campus transfers/college retention, Athletics), the Brockport Sport Management major is financially healthy as it retains nearly all of its approximately 100 new students per year. In addition to financial support available to all students, three scholarships are earmarked exclusively for sport management majors; two are fully endowed and one is two-thirds endowed. The Sport Management major is cost-effective to the college, considering 280 students are enrolled in the Sport Management major, (based on fall, 2018).
An area of opportunity that has brought optimism and excitement to the Sport Management major are the plans for renovating the Tuttle Complex, which includes, an expanded Sport Management Lab. Once operational, these expanded facilities and equipment can promote student success by providing opportunities for students that may include but are not limited to networking, gaining practical communications experiences, engaging in valuable research experiences with their peers and faculty members, and supporting guest speakers.
The Sport Management Club offers another opportunity, and has been reactivated by Mr. Nate Bull, a recently hired lecturer in the major. However, the Sport Management Club will require additional resources to grow. Although slowed a bit by COVID, this opportunity will help connect sport management majors to one another, their major, the department and the University.
The expanded 21st century bandwidth provides the infrastructure for the advancement of on-line courses. Student demand for on-line courses will determine their growth rate. Regardless, consideration should be given to offering an online course or two during the summer for ambitious students. The unfortunate arrival of COVID, may have involuntarily expedited this opportunity, as all of our classes have increased on-line related experiences. The post-COVID future calls for us to identify current on-line teaching methods that are considered best teaching practices.
Our current curriculum is only three years old and for now it is prospering and we are satisfied with it. An on-going awareness of trends taking place in the field as well as continuous assessment of the major is always prudent. It should be noted, that our program is ranked 9th and 14th in the USA in two different rankings and is a trendsetter. Our current curriculum has the ability to encompass all new areas of sport management by incorporating new content into already existing courses. Adding a course means eliminating a course, as credit creep should be prevented, and should only take place under unanimously supported circumstances. Opportunities to teach new classes in the form of electives, could be an option for content related to the following: sport analytics, media communications, entertainment sports, sport law, risk management in sport, and esports.
The opportunity to expand internal and external outreach may take place by creating additional partnerships across campus, which could further cultivate and sustain relationships necessary for long-term growth. There is sufficient opportunity for the sport management major to engage in interdisciplinary collaboration with other departments, which may include the Academic Success Center, Advancement, Career Services, Department of Journalism, Broadcasting and Public Relations, Division of Enrollment Management & Student Affairs, Event Management, and the School of Business and Management.
The Sport Management major welcomes all students who represent a diverse student body with a variety of career goals and objectives. We accept students “as they are.” Our Sport Management Major consists of a curriculum that supports multiple options, which allows students to select options which can meet a diverse range of individual needs. Such diverse interests can be operationalized in the required second program of study (chosen by the student), multiple field experiences, elective classes, and study abroad opportunities.
Since the last PPR, the Sport Management Major has performed well based on its assessment criteria. The student learning outcomes reflect the strong experiential learning emphasis in the Sport Management Major. At a rate nearing 100% our student learning outcomes are consistently achieved, which are predominately embedded in required experiential components of our major, e.g., practicums and internships. Future assessments will continue to measure sport management SLOs through experiential learning activities, through site supervisor assessments and exit interview questions, yet also begin to include additional theory based assessments, e.g., tests and assignments. Best teaching practices of our sport management faculty members have, and will continue to, support the successful achievement of Sport Management Major learning outcomes.
Partly based on the recommendations of the last PPR, three major changes took place to the Sport Management Major: (a) one full-time tenure-track faculty member was hired, (b) one full-time instructor was hired, and (c) a new curriculum was created and implemented.
The primary need of the program is to maintain its three current full-time faculty and its additional part-time faculty members who deliver the curriculum. An equally important need is the continued support of the upper administration, which over the past 7 years has been outstanding, from the chair to the president, who has publicly acknowledged our number 14 ranking in the nation. The new sport management lab that will also serve as a high technology area, is scheduled to take place in the newly renovated Tuttle Complex. This lab will support the 21st century technological advances that our program needs to implement. Our program also requests a $3000.00 annual sport management fund that will be used to support outside guest speakers and study abroad opportunities for our sport management students.