A key to our success is all the wonderful people who work with the EdD in Kinesiology program including our own graduate assistants (GAs). Each year they serve in a variety of roles to help support the students, faculty and staff – this includes behind the scenes work that sometimes goes unnoticed.
As program director, I asked this year’s GAs to share a little more about themselves. Here is what they had to say…
The three of us are all doctoral students in Kinesiology Department. Josh is in his first year in the Ph.D. program, and Yongsun and myself (Yanhua) are in our last year in the Ph.D. program. We have been working in school-based and community-based PE, PA, and Sports programs, and would like to share our experiences with you. We will be available to provide resources and assistance for you to be successful in the Ed.D. program. You will find our detailed introductions as follows.
Hello everyone! My name is Yanhua Shen. I am a fourth-year doctoral student in studies of physical education curriculum and pedagogy. I am from China. I worked as a soccer player, a soccer coach, and an assistant professor before I came to the US. I am currently working as a graduate assistant for the Ed.D. in KIN program. The Ed.D. in KIN program provided me the opportunities to learn technologies and strategies that promote remote learning, and connect with colleagues from different fields in Kinesiology. My research interest is innovative pedagogies that promote children’s social and emotional learning development through physical activities and sports in school-based and out-of-school contexts. My dissertation is to examine underserved children’s social and emotional learning through a sports-based youth development program grounded in a hybrid models-based practice using a mixed-methods approach. I am glad to be able to work with you in the Ed.D. program. Please feel free to share and communicate any research-related topic or question with me.
Hello! My name is Joshua Jordan. I am husband to an amazing wife of 11 years, and the father of an amazing 10-year-old son, and 6-year-old daughter. I am a first year Ph.D. Kinesiology student here at UNCG. My focus is in Community Youth Sport Development. I am African-American as well as a member of the Goshute Tribe in Ibapah, UT. For the past eight years I ran a basketball skills training company called Follow Through Athletics LLC. in Sacramento, Ca. where I was fortunate to work with players and families from many different backgrounds. After earning my Master’s degree in Mental Health and Wellness from Grand Canyon University during the pandemic of 2020, my wife encouraged me to further my education. I applied to UNCG and I am grateful and thankful for the opportunity that the university has given me. As I navigate this new terrain of scholarship I am currently interested in the intersection between Hip-Hop, basketball, religion, and how a better understanding of this intersection can help physical educators and coaches better serve youth. This is my first year with the Ed.D. program and I look forward to working with all of you.
My name is Yongsun Lee from South Korea. Yes, the guy everyone calls me “Sun.” I am doing my Doctorate in KIN with the CYSD (Community Youth Sport Development) concentration under Dr. Michael Hemphill. I teach Taekwondo-based martial arts at a college, a high school, and a community-based after-school program to help foster social-emotional competencies. My research interests lie in the area of martial arts pedagogy, social-emotional learning, best practices for sport-based youth development, and transfer of life skills learning. Particularly, I am interested to see how the paradox (learning fighting skills not to fight) promotes positive youth development. I like camping and hiking as well as playing tennis. As I have been working for the EdD in KIN program, I have many opportunities to work with many EdD in KIN students who are experts and specialists in different areas, concentrations, and states. As a GA, I facilitate many events, such as orientation, dissertation proposal/defense, or social events that allow me to know more about the students and learn more about different ways we connect each other. I am privileged because no other PhD students can do what I do.
We hope knowing a little more about our GAs will give you a peek at the great support network in place for our students, faculty and staff. They are an important part of the Ed.D. in KIN family.