Lusk, Serena

Serena Lusk, BHK 1997, found her beginnings in recreation as a competitive swimmer in her early teens. As a junior swim coach at age 13 and a lifeguard at 16, Serena knew early on that she wanted to be involved in sport and recreation as a career. Her jobs as a swim coach and a lifeguard provided opportunities for a high level of responsibility and accountability at a young age and have helped shape her approach to work today.

When she entered her undergraduate years at UBC, Serena sought out the Leisure and Sport Management Program. With support from KIN faculty and staff, particularly from Professor Emeritus Dr. Jack Kelso, her first year faculty advisor, Serena enjoyed a number of valuable experiences in recreation and intramural activities, including working at the UBC Aquatic Centre and swimming on the UBC Masters swim team.

Serena’s early career was sparked by an internship opportunity with Badminton BC. This experience eventually lead to a full time administrative position with Swim BC, where fellow KIN Alum Ken Radford (BRE 1981, MPE 1988) became an excellent role model in terms of leadership and team-building. Leaving Swim BC to pursue an MBA at the University of Oregon’s Warsaw Center for Sports Business was a difficult decision for Serena, but one which lead to further learning beyond the sport and recreation field, and a widening of career opportunities.

Since 2005, Serena’s career has been with the City of Richmond. The organization has provided progressive opportunities for her in a variety of areas and she currently leads one of five divisions in the City: Community Services. Community Services includes Parks, Sport, Recreation, Arts, Culture, Heritage and Social Development. Together, these disciplines contribute to overall Community Wellness – a passion for Serena – and she has been fortunate to be able to be invited to speak worldwide about Richmond’s healthy, active, caring and connected community.

As a resident of Richmond, with her husband and two children, Serena has the benefit of seeing the changes she and her team create in the community, which inspires her every day!

Graffos, Angelo

Angelo Graffos, BKin 2016, MSc 2019, started his research journey in his 4th year at UBC when he volunteered as a research assistant (RA) in Dr. Michael Hunt’s Motion Analysis and Biofeedback Lab. His interest in knee osteoarthritis and biomechanics research stemmed from an ACL injury he suffered in elementary school. As a result, his injury inspired him to learn more about the link between his ACL injury and osteoarthritis, and the impact research has on rehabilitation practices.

During his stint as an RA, he found his passion for research, and he decided to pursue a Master of Science in Rehabilitation Sciences under the supervision of Dr. Hunt. In collaboration with researchers from the Centre for Hip Health and Mobility, and Arthritis Research Canada, Angelo’s thesis project examined the biomechanics of the cross-body lunge in individuals with and without femoroacetabular impingement.

In order to gain more research exposure and build relationships within the research community, Angelo began volunteering as an RA at the CHANGEpain Clinic in 2016 and the UBC Fitness, Aging, & Stress Lab in 2017. As a graduate student, he was a member of the Centre for Hip Health and Mobility Trainee Committee, where he organized academic and social events with other trainees, researchers and faculty members.

Because of his contributions to the research and science community over the years, he has received several awards, including the Arthritis Society Vancouver Branch Scholarship in 2017, and the Arthritis Society Vancouver Community Group James Kwan Scholarship in 2017 and 2018.

One of his proudest moments at UBC was when he received the Vancouver Coastal Health Research Institute (VCHRI) Rising Star Award on the day of his MSc graduation ceremony. This award recognizes trainees who exhibit research excellence and are role models in the VCHRI environment, and it funds travel for international scientific conference presentations.

Angelo is passionate about helping and inspiring others, both in the academic world and in the community. He is a leader and an active volunteer in the School of Kinesiology – a Young Alumni Advisory Group member, and a mentor in the Mentorship Program. Combining his love of sports and working with children and youth, Angelo has been involved as a volunteer, support worker, and skills head coach for the Canucks Autism Network since 2014. His consistent and dedicated work has been recognized by the organization with a volunteer training scholarship in 2017.

Angelo’s long-term goal is to continue to help others. He is eager to explore opportunities in pediatrics, sports medicine, and family medicine, and to pursue his interests in the medical field either as a physician or a physician-scientist.

alumni news, alumni profiles, alumni stories, angelo graffos

Recap: UBC vs. University of Tokyo Baseball Classic | August 13th 2019

Thank you to all those who attended the UBC vs. University of Tokyo Baseball Game on August 13th 2019, the feature game of UBC’s first ever International Collegiate Baseball Classic! The UBC Thunderbirds defeated the University of Tokyo 8-2 in front of a crowd of 3,300 — the Baseball Classic marked the first time that a Japanese Varsity Baseball team has ever played on Canadian soil.

Game day started out with the School of Kinesiology holding a demo and seminar on the science of sport for all tournament players and coaches from Japan and the U.S., led by Rob Boushel and Carlos Cantu.

The School of Kinesiology has a long history with UBC’s Baseball program — the Thunderbirds played competitively in the PNW since the 1950s, but disbanded in 1966 due to budget cuts. It was only recently that the Thunderbirds Baseball team was rebuilt. KIN Alum Terry McKaig, BHK 1997, became Baseball’s head coach in 2000 and shaped the program into what it is today.

The UBC Baseball brand now involves youth player clinics, camps and training programs, and is home to the Vancouver franchise ‘UBC Thunder’ of the British Columbia Premier Baseball League. Today, the Thunderbirds are the only Canadian University competing for a US National championship in college baseball. UBC is producing some impressive professional baseball talent, with some 27 Major League draft picks and non-drafted free agents.

To read the recap of the game, click here.

alumni news, baseball classic

New Graduate course: “Killam Connection: Healthy Aging from Cells to Societies”

The School of Kinesiology at UBC is pleased to announce that Dr. Eli Puterman’s “Healthy Aging from Cells to Societies” is the winner of the 2019-2020 Killam Connection Competition.

Every year, the Killam Connection program provides up to $25,000 to enable UBC faculty to host an innovative and interdisciplinary research forum and graduate course focused around a theme of general interest and public importance. The purpose of this grant is to provide an opportunity for faculty and graduate students to engage with leading scholars on matters of importance. The grant is also meant for students to gain experience developing and possibly implementing scholarly projects that have a public impact.

“Killam Connection: Healthy Aging from Cells to Societies” will tackle the complexities of healthy aging across the lifespan and support the training of future scientists in developing practical skills in translating scientific knowledge to successfully engage the public. In this graduate course and seminar series, healthy aging will be explored through these lenses – through an examination of the ground-breaking research on cellular, social, cultural, behavioural, structural, and environmental factors that intersect to predict how long and well we live, both physically and mentally. This course also seeks to address the current public discourse on healthy aging and the myths about healthy aging that persist in the public sphere. This 13-week course will include UBC, national and international speakers from across the biological, social and behavioural sciences.

Some of the speakers expected to participate in the course are Rachel Yehuda, PhD, from Mount Sinai’s Hospital in New York; Catrin Tudor-Locke, PhD, from University of Massachusets; Tim Caulfield, LLM, from University of Alberta, journalist Mary Beth Pfeiffer; Stanford University’s Lloyd Minor, MD, among others.

This Graduate Lecture-Seminar, KIN 500P 001 is under Special Topics in Kinesiology and will be offered to graduate students in January 2020. For more information please click here.

Congratulations to Dr. Eli Puterman for the SSHRC Partnership Grant

The PGs are the largest grant by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC) and the program is designed to advance research partnerships and knowledge mobilization in the social sciences and humanities through shared intellectual leadership and mutually beneficial collaboration between researchers at postsecondary institutions and organizations of various types.

Research topic: Scaling up Trauma and Violence-Informed Outreach with Women Affected by Violence
Applicant: Dr. Victoria Bungay, UBC with co-applicant, Dr. Eli Puterman, and 27 others.
Partner organizations: 2 universities and 12 non-profit and government organization partners
SSHRC award: $2,499,946
Partners cash/in-kind commitments: $1,966,154
MSFHR match funding grant: $380,000
Other funding sources: $490,000
Total project budget: $5,336,100

Congratulations on this exceptional achievement!

Running Free: Documentary Première and Panel

For generations, there was an expectation that children would spend their free time playing outdoors, developing friendships, and exploring their neighbourhoods without direct parental supervision. However, in recent decades we have seen a dramatic decline in the independent mobility of children. A worrying consequence of this shift is that Canadian society is now facing a physical inactivity crisis among children and youth. What is driving these changes and how can we reverse this trend?

September 18th was the première screening of Running Free: Children’s Independent Mobility, produced by Professor Guy Faulkner of UBC’s School of Kinesiology. Told through the eyes of three families, this 26-minute documentary explores the concept of children’s independent mobility, the benefits for children’s mental health, and challenges viewers to consider solutions to this issue. Following the screening there will was a panel discussion about the film’s themes and a reception that continued the conversation with fellow UBC alumni and friends.

More details at Alumni UBC

View the Trailer

Watch the film here.

Host

Guy Faulkner – Professor, School of Kinesiology, University of British Columbia; Canadian Institutes of Health Research-Public Health Agency of Canada Chair (CIHR-PHAC) in Applied Public Health

Moderator

Shiral Tobin – Director of Journalism and Programming, CBC British Columbia

Panelists

Adrian Crook – Senior Digital Strategist and Civic Advocate; Founder, 5Kids1Condo.com

Mariana Brussoni, MA’96, PhD’00 – Developmental Psychologist; Associate Professor, Department of Pediatrics and the School of Population and Public Health, University of British Columbia

Negin Riazi – Doctoral Candidate, School of Kinesiology, University of British Columbia

Robyn Pitman – Lecturer, Department of Sociology, Faculty of Arts, University of British Columbia; Registered Clinical Counsellor and Registered Marriage and Family Therapist

New Paper Out

Aug. 10, 2019 – New paper out by PhD candidate Negin Riazi and Dr. Guy Faulkner examining the correlates of children’s independent mobility in Canada. Read it here!

New Paper Out

Aug. 9, 2019 – New paper out examining relationship between measures of area-level SES and type of urbanization with measures of active transportation, independent mobility, outdoor time, and physical activity. Read it here!

Margaret Pham named Google Cloud Academic All-America® Team Member of the Year for the College Division

Junior field hockey player Margaret Pham of the University of British Columbia has been named as the 2018-19 Google Cloud Academic All-America® Team Member of the Year for the College Division, as selected by the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA).

The Google Cloud Academic All-America® College Division teams includes two-year institutions, Canadian institutions and any United States four-year institutions that are not affiliated with the NCAA or NAIA. This the eighth year that CoSIDA has named College Division Academic All-America® teams.

It is the first time a UBC athlete has earned Google Cloud Academic All-America® Team Member of the Year recognition.

“This award represents the hard work I’ve put into both my academics and athletics,” said Pham. “Trying to achieve balance takes time and effort. I’m still tackling new challenges and learning from my teammates and university experiences about resiliency, perseverance, and compassion. It’s such an honor to be recognized from such a large pool of athletes!”

Pham, a junior midfielder from Mississauga, Ontario, Canada, has a 4.05 GPA as a kinesiology and interdisciplinary studies major. Pham was twice named a Canada West All-Star and was named to the 2017 U SPORTS All-Canadian team. Pham, who is a member of Canada’s senior national team, was the co-scoring leader in Canada West during 2017. Pham received the Barbara Schrodt Award in Kinesiology along with the John B. Macdonald and Margaret E. Barr Bigelow Memorial scholarships in 2018-19.

Photo credits:Rich Lam/UBC Thunderbirds

Miles, Rosalin

Dr. Rosalin Miles (MHK 1998), research associate in Indigenous Studies in Kinesiology, member of the Lytton First Nation and founder and Executive Director of the Indigenous Physical Activity & Cultural Circle (IPACC), a non-profit which has hosted five annual 5km runs with the Musqueam community to promote physical activity and well-being, has been awarded the Hidden Heroes 2019 award.

Former Chief, Gail Sparrow of the Musqueam band, nominated Rosalin for her role in shaping the non-profit, hosting the annual National Indigenous Physical Activity & Wellness conference, and showing the importance of giving back to the community as a First Nation woman.

Rosalin completed her Education, Doctoral Degree, Curriculum and Instruction, major Exercise Science, and her Graduate Certificate in Non-Profit Management at the University of Central Florida. Her dissertation was on the “Attainment of Doctoral Degree for American Indian and Alaska Native Women”. She obtained her Master’s degree in Human Kinetics, specializing in Coaching Science, at UBC.

Overall, Dr. Miles has a combined 32 years of experience working in the sports, fitness, education and health field in a variety of disciplines as a division one level NCAA level coach, registered Kinesiologist, Active Release Therapist, college and university instructor, Researcher, Nationally awarded Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist, and as a National Level athlete.

Dr. Miles also founded Maaj Consulting Group, which provides services to develop scientific and indigenous knowledge in order to facilitate common understanding for the betterment of Aboriginal communities.

Dr. Miles has published papers that include, Indigenous Long-Term Athlete & Participant Development Model (2016) and “With Every Step, We Grow Stronger”: The Cardiometabolic Benefits of an Indigenous-Led and Community-Based Healthy Lifestyle Intervention (2019). She is a shining light in our School.