Award Winning Faculty

Our faculty not only excel in teaching but also in research and service. HPER faculty have received the most prestigious awards the university, state, and national organizations in the field. The two most recent awards received this Fall were to senior lecturers Renee Rainey and John Moreau. Congratulations Renee and John on your achievements and well-deserved honors.

  Renee Rainey received the Honor Award at the 86^th Annual Convention of the Texas Association for Health, Physical Education, Recreation and Dance (TAHPERD). Renee was recognized for her significant contributions to physical education in the state of Texas and numerous and influential professional contributions to TAHPERD. 

  John Moreau received the Distinguished Alumni Award from the Texas State University Alumni Association.  John is an internationally-known teacher, coach, judge, and athlete.  He has been a finalist in ten Olympic Trials in two sports - fencing and modern pentathlon, receiving two silver and two bronze medals. He was a member of the 1984 and 1988 Olympic Fencing teams and on the 1981, 1983 and 1987 U.S. World Teams in fencing. He won the National Team Champion in fencing six times.

Welcome New Faculty

In Fall 2009 the department welcomed five new tenure track faculty. They come from all over the country, and bring outstanding teaching and research experience to the department.

Dr. Rod Harter was appointed professor of athletic training. His academic preparation in biomechanics and 30+ years as a certified athletic trainer have shaped his research agenda.  He has ongoing studies involving the biomechanical, neuromuscular and hormonal aspects of anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury, and the prevention of shoulder injuries among intercollegiate and professional baseball pitchers, specifically, glenohumeral internal rotation deficit (GIRD).  Dr. Harter most recently served as an associate professor in the Department of Nutrition and Exercise Sciences at Oregon State University. He is taking a leadership role as director of the undergraduate athletic training education program.

Dr. Duane Knudson began a position as professor and chair of the department. He is internationally known for his books and many studies on the biomechanics of tennis, stretching, and exercise. He has over twenty years of experience in higher education, serving most recently as associate dean and interim chair at California State University, Chico.

Dr. Ting Liu has moved from a lecturer to an assistant professor position in Motor Learning. Dr. Liu is interested in the interaction between motor development and motor learning/control, specifically in early childhood motor behavior changes on children with Autism Spectrum Disorders. She works closely with physicians, therapists, and other professionals to establish a motor behavior database and to design early intervention programs for children with autism. Dr. Liu earned her PhD in motor learning and control from the University of Texas at Austin.

Dr. Karen Meaney was appointed associate professor of physical education pedagogy and coordinator for physical education teacher education. Dr. Meaney uses Bandura’s (1986) to examine modeling and information processing components impacting children’s acquisition and retention of motor skills. She has also examined the impact of participation in service-learning programs on pre-service educators’ self-efficacy, pedagogical content knowledge, and cultural competence for teaching. She most recently served as an associate professor at Texas Tech University.

Dr. Jim Williams was appointed assistant professor of exercise physiology. His research focuses on cardiopulmonary limitation to exercise performance, respiratory muscle fatigue and training, aging and physiological gender differences, and neurotrophin responses to exercise. He comes to us from the Department of Exercise and Sport Science at Texas Tech University.