Since its establishment in May of 2023, Hoosier Sport has become an unstoppable force in helping kids in rural Indiana experience the transformative power of sport and physical activity to shape healthier futures, thanks to the community outreach efforts of SPH-B students under faculty leadership.
Earlier this year, Hoosier Sport was awarded the American Heart Association Career Development Award—a three-year grant in the total amount of $231,000—ensuring the future of the program in Indiana and solidifying its place in the federal public health strategy.
Hoosier Sport also received additional nationwide recognition by the Aspen Institute as a 2024 Project Play Champion; joining other high-profile groups including Baltimore SquashWise, Boys and Girls Clubs of Western Pennsylvania, and Epic for Girls.
Meanwhile, the wins just keep coming: In fall 2024, the SPH-B course titled “Sport-Based Youth Development in Public Health” was officially offered by the SPH-B Department of Kinesiology. Attracting a cohort of 12 students, the classmates engaged in six weeks of intensive training before coaching elementary and middle school children at locations that include long-time partner White River Valley Middle School in Greene County and new partner Clear Creek Christian School in Bloomington.
“We have been working hard to build an infrastructure to something sustainable here that is bigger than just a study or two,” shares Kyle Kercher, Ph.D., assistant professor in the Department of Kinesiology and one of the founding faculty members of the program. “The support from the American Heart Association has been super helpful for bringing that vision together.”
Third-year Ph.D. student Janette Watkins has played a significant role in the success of Hoosier Sport in 2024. As a dual major in the Department of Kinesiology and IU’s neuroscience program, she serves as the Hoosier Sport research coordinator as well as a mentor.
“I help plan all the studies, mentor the research assistants, and connect with community members in the field at the community sites, coaching the kids and leading them through all the awesome Hoosier Sport programs we’ve implemented so far,” says Watkins. “It is important for me to help foster more opportunities for kids in rural communities who traditionally have fewer opportunities than students in other communities to get involved and gain skills to support involvement in physical activities and sports throughout their lifespan.”
Watkins adds that “Hoosier Sport has completely reframed my trajectory and career goals,” changing her focus from sports industry to staying in academia and establishing a version of the Hoosier Sport model in southern rural communities. Watkins also recently presented “Exploring Digital Media, Body Satisfaction, and Physical Activity among Rural Adolescents: A Cross-Sectional Analysis,” using Hoosier Sport research data, at the annual SACNAS conference in October.
Gracie Stoller, Skyler Taaffe, and Sydney Callahan—SPH-B sophomores majoring in exercise science—concur that the Hoosier Sport course has helped grow their confidence interacting with different age groups and community stakeholders, as well as presenting their research.
“In middle school, I was very unfit and wasn’t a fan of sports—I felt uncomfortable playing,” says Stoller, who would like to be a physical therapist working with children on the autism spectrum. “I had a very encouraging coach that was able to get me into sports and I eventually did long-distance running. I love having the opportunity to inspire kids in the same way I was inspired to get active.”
A San Francisco native, Taaffe says the sports used in Hoosier Sport—such as pickleball—were new to her, and she has enjoyed learning new athletic skills that she can share with students at the partner schools.
“I’m excited about the impact I am going to make on these kids,” says Taaffe, who is also interested in physical therapy. “When I coached gymnastics in my hometown It was gratifying to see the kids improve and how excited they were to come to class. I miss that a lot, but Hoosier Sport allows me to experience that again and establish these connections.”
Callahan has been focusing on the research aspect of the Hoosier Sport course to support her goal of becoming a personal trainer, and credits Watkins with inspiring her.
“The research I am doing now is how girls can build up their confidence within themselves when going to the gym—it can be a very masculine energy, and I want to find out what’s stopping females from going,” says Callahan, who is passionate about power lifting. “This course has taught us specific ways to coach and also how do research, find resources and ensure that we have good data.”
Callahan says the small class size has been hugely beneficial in creating a supportive academic atmosphere where the students and faculty work in tandem with the community.
Callahan adds, “Aside from the research, partnering with and encouraging children to be more active is a great opportunity for my future.”
For more stories about SPH-B students and faculty making a big difference both locally and worldwide, visit go.iu.edu/48bx.