Time for a change as HPER department changes name

The department of health, physical education and recreation in the school of health sciences at Georgia College & State University has changed its name to the department of kinesiology.
Officials say the new name could take some time to get used to.
“It was the product of a great deal of intentional effort,” Jim Lidstone, department chair of kinesiology said. “First, it was a major topic of discussion in faculty retreats over a two year period. The faculty reached consensus that this was the name we wanted and we submitted the recommendation to the administration in October 2001.”
The decision was delayed until Dr. Ishee, dean of the school of healh sciences, joined the university in July 2002. Then the decision was placed in the hands of the students.
“We circulated a resolution and petition in support of the change to all of our current undergraduate and graduate students and received approximately 250 signatures. Finally, we obtained letters of support from alumni and key leaders in the field from selected USG institutions.”
The Board of Regents approved the new name on Nov. 26.
According to the “info page,” Lidstone said the name change doesn’t reflect changes in academic programs being offered by the department; rather, it better reflects the programs that have been in place for several years.
“The name kinesiology has been recommended since 1989 by the American Academy of Kinesiology and Physical Education, the scholarly society of our discipline, as a means of bringing more unity to the field of study,” Lidstone said. “The name health, physical education and recreation encompasses only 3 sub-disciplinary areas and does not describe our current majors. Kinesiology is an umbrella term, much like psychology, that encompasses a wide range of sub-disciplines.”
Lidstone said the term “kinesiology” is derived from two Greek verbs, “kinein” and “logus,” which mean to move and to discourse.
“Modern usage has changed the meaning of the suffix ‘logus’ to ‘the study of,’ so that kinesiology literally reads as ‘the study of movement.’ We study both the art and science of human movement, and it encompasses both theory and practice,” Lidstone said.
“It’s like pouring a fine wine into a new bottle. We have the same majors that we have had for some time: health & physical education teaching certification; athletic training; community health and human services; exercise science and outdoor education. There’s just a different label on the bottle,” Lidstone said.
For more information, contact Dr. Jim Lidstone, chair of the department of kinesiology in the school of health sciences at Georgia College & State University, (478) 445-4072.

Posted by Colonnade Archives on Jan 23 2004. Filed under News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry