The Kinesiology Undergraduate Society (KUS) is open to all undergraduates, and its elected KUS executive works to represent the entire undergraduate community in Kinesiology. The KUS wished to mark the School’s 75th Anniversary by supporting projects that were created by KIN Undergraduate students that embody the values of the School and that make a significant and positive impact on their communities. Here we present to you, four undergraduate student initiatives that successfully impacted their communities: Active Aging, Sport4U, Women on Weights, and Using 3D Technology to Enhance Physiotherapy for Kids.
The Active Aging Initiative – Lynda Li
“My favourite part about leading the program was helping seniors stay more active and learning to create exercise programs for older adults!”Instructor Spotlight: Sarah Burns (2nd year)
“I had such a great time leading the program as it allowed me the opportunity to apply knowledge I have learned throughout my undergrad to a program that helps participants stay healthy and safe. It was so much fun logging onto zoom for class and seeing everyone participate – it was a great start to my day” Instructor Spotlight: Moira Outerbridge (5th year)
The Active Aging Initiative provides the opportunity for UBC Kinesiology students to lead strength, balance, and fitness programs for older adults in Vancouver. We’ve teamed up with the South Granville Seniors Center, Killarney Community Center, and three assisted living homes under the Developmental Disabilities Association to deliver weekly fitness programs facilitated by six Kinesiology students trained to deliver the Stay Active and Independent for Life Program. We’re approaching the last few weeks of the program, and it has been phenomenal to see the prominent role of Kinesiology students in fostering a positive, inclusive, and health-promoting environment.
The Sport4U Initiative – Jason Lin and Cameron Ardiel
The @sport4uproject is a community project run by Jason Lin and Cameron Ardiel that seeks to provide members of the community a chance to participate in sport. Sport4U will collect lightly used sports equipment through donation boxes located across Metro Vancouver for their gear drive where community members will have access to free sports equipment. Please consider donating your lightly used sports equipment to help give everyone a chance to play! For more information, check out their Instagram page https://www.instagram.com/sport4uproject/
The Women On Weights Initiative – Shannon Song and Arden Sauer
“This project was inspired by our past misconceptions of women weightlifting as well as fears within a gym setting. We have experienced what it’s like to deal with our own fears within an all-gender gym while also trying to figure out what to do and how to use all of the machines/equipment. Throughout our Kinesiology degree, the importance of strength training has been repeatedly emphasized, but students from other programs may lack knowledge about it. We wanted to create an inclusive, safe, and comfortable environment for female-identifying UBC students, free-of-charge, to come together and gain knowledge and confidence about weightlifting and fitness. Fortunately, our program has reached out to a diverse group of students from various faculties who all come together to join us every Sunday and Thursday evening for our weekly gym and Zoom sessions. This program would not exist without the help of our two amazing trainers, Justine and Laura, as well as the KUS Student Initiative Fund! We are thrilled that this program can contribute to kickstarting individual fitness journeys, and we are so excited to see where this program takes them in the future!”
The “Using 3D Technology to Enhance Physiotherapy for Kids” Initiative – Wesley Lam
My name is Wesley and I am a fourth year student. This year, I had the honor of receiving the student initiative fund for my project “Using 3D Technology to Enhance Physiotherapy for Kids”. For my project, I plan on using 3D design and 3D printing to create an assortment of toys, tools, and anatomical models for a kids’ physiotherapy clinic that I volunteer at. So far, I’ve created 3 toys that help engage children while they are performing their treatment and I am currently working on designing custom tools that are tailored towards physiotherapy for kids. I believe that the integration of 3D technology into the physiotherapy industry provides endless opportunities for innovation and extends the boundaries of traditional physiotherapy practice.