News and Events

Young softball coach sliding into mentor’s role

3/21/23

For the last two years, Texas Woman's alum Haley Colwell has been a part of a mentoring program run by the Texas High School Coaches Association (THSCA), aimed at keeping young coaches in the profession. While being mentored, Colwell is also keen about helping the new generation of coaches.

Academics is biggest motivator for Pioneer basketball star

11/21/22

Home court advantage takes on a deeper meaning for Texas Woman’s University sophomore Ashley Ingram. When the 6-2 forward steps on the basketball court for the Pioneers basketball team, there are memories from her childhood all around Kitty Magee Arena.

Design team places third at NASA-sponsored design competition

11/17/22

 A Texas Woman’s team of senior kinesiology students placed third overall at the Texas Space Grant Consortium Design Challenge Showcase, continuing the university’s string of successes at the NASA-sponsored science competition.

Peterbilt announces support to design team

9/27/22

Representatives from the Peterbilt Motors Company and the Peterbilt Women’s Initiative presented a check to Texas Woman’s University on Sept. 26 on the TWU campus. The funds will support the Texas Space Grant Consortium (TSGC) Design Challenge team, comprising of undergraduates from the School of Health Promotion and Kinesiology, in its Fall 2022 competition.

TWU alum gives $100K to launch scholarships in health promotion, kinesiology

7/25/22

Texas Woman’s University alumna Dawn Chaney, PhD, has provided a $100,000 gift to TWU for scholarships benefitting students majoring in exercise physiology and exercise science, and students who are committed to women’s leadership.

TWU student on mission to inspire future biomechanics practitioners

5/10/22

As a woman working in biomechanics, Texas Woman’s doctoral candidate Noelle Tuttle is dedicated to the outreach for and education of more women in the field, especially minorities who have had little to no exposure. Thanks to grants from the Biomechanics Initiative, she was able to further that mission by co-hosting virtual and in-person events in Denton and Ecuador to inspire future practitioners and researchers.

TWU design team wins NASA challenge – again!

4/22/22

What’s better than a heavy underdog winning an innovative design contest involving some of the state’s brightest minds?

Winning it again.

TWU students place second in Kinesiology Student Bowl competition

3/23/22

A Texas Woman’s team comprised of three School of Health Promotion and Kinesiology students demonstrated impressive knowledge and placed second overall in the Kinesiology Student Bowl during the Texas Chapter of the American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM) 2022 Meeting in February.

TWU kinesiology graduate committed to life of service for others

12/6/21

The role of a soldier and a physical therapist is to serve others, and Texas Woman’s December 2021 kinesiology graduate Alexandra Pritchett is an outstanding example of how to do both well.

TWU’s all-female design competition team scores big, brings research to life

11/22/21

Five Texas Woman’s kinesiology seniors turned classroom theories into a real-world device by competing in the Texas Space Grant Consortium Design Challenge Showcase November 16-17. The TWU team, named The Oneiroi, was the only all-female team competing and won best overall team, along with best poster, best peer review and best video. They also placed second overall in the presentation category. All five team members are December 2021 graduates.

Alumni Spotlight: Cathy Sellers, BS ’75 (Kinesiology)

10/8/21

TWU Kinesiology alumna Cathy Sellers, BS ’75, enjoyed a career of over 40 years in coaching track & field that included positions at public schools, universities and serving as an administrator for USA Track & Field. In 2003, Sellers joined the U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Committee as the manager of coaching.

Scoring on and off the court

10/5/21

Now, more than ever, women are succeeding in traditionally male-dominated career fields, but they are still underrepresented when it comes to leadership positions in sport management. Two Texas Woman’s community members—alumna Lisa Langston, a PhD in Kinesiology with a Sport Management concentration graduate, and current PhD student Grace McDowell—are changing that, bringing hard-earned skills and sheer determination to their leadership positions, while serving as role models for future generations of women.

Alumna creates adaptive sport scholarship endowment

9/1/21

Sarah Rich (PhD ’81), an international promoter and advocate of physical education for all, has created the Sarah M. Rich, Ph.D., Adaptive Sport Scholarship Endowment to support graduate students studying adaptive physical education (APE).

Kinesiology program swinging success on cable program

6/23/21

Former biomechanics graduate student Chris Como visited TWU to film a segment for the Golf Channel program, Swing Expedition. Como visited with his former teacher, Young-Hoo Kwon, PhD, professor and director of the Biomechanics Laboratory in the School of Health Promotion & Kinesiology.

In pursuit of science: TWU alumna inspires girls interested in STEM

5/19/21

Texas Woman’s kinesiology-biomechanics alumna Kirsten Tulchin-Francis (PhD ’12), a self-proclaimed science and math geek, has spent more than 23 years combing those two passions with athletics and medicine to achieve success in the field of biomedical engineering. Her experiences as a researcher and teacher are now inspiring other generations of females to make names for themselves in the science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) fields.

TWU inspires high school students with virtual biomechanics events

5/19/21

For the past few years, Texas Woman’s biomechanics and motor behavior graduate students have participated in National Biomechanics Day (NBD), an annual event designed to introduce high school students to the field of biomechanics. Though the 2020 events were cancelled due to COVID-19, TWU came roaring back this April with virtual events to both educate and inspire future researchers.

TWU’s all-female design competition team tackles space headaches in astronauts

5/4/21

Five Texas Woman’s kinesiology seniors brought research to life by competing in the Texas Space Grant Consortium Design Challenge Showcase April 20-21. The TWU Athena V team, the second all-female TWU team to enter the competition and the only all-female team competing this spring, placed seventh overall. All five team members will graduate this May.

Alumni Spotlight: Elizabeth Burns, PhD ’78, ’81

3/5/21

A career in academia, as a professor, was the long-term goal for health sciences alumna Elizabeth Burns, PhD ’78, ’81. Now retired, she and her husband have created a generous endowment as part of their estate plans to fund scholarships for full-time undergraduate students as part of the Elizabeth H. Burns and John M. Burns Scholarship Endowment.

TWU kinesiology graduate gains experience and skills by creating international youth program

12/7/20

Texas Woman’s summer 2020 graduate Sandhya Manjunath (MS in Kinesiology - Sport Management) hopes to one day introduce sport management programs across the nation in India. Thanks to the education and experiences she received from TWU, she is on track to make that dream a reality.

TWU’s first all-female design competition team brings research to life

11/30/20

Five Texas Woman’s kinesiology seniors turned classroom theories into a real-world device by competing in the Texas Space Grant Consortium Design Challenge Showcase November 17-18. The TWU Athena V team, the first all-female TWU team to enter the competition and the only all-female team competing, placed fourth overall.

Prepared for success: TWU alumna is ready to tackle her career

11/2/20

Texas Woman’s prides itself with providing outstanding academic instruction, but as alumna Fiona Kiprop (BS ’19) discovered, the university also prepares students for successful careers. In her new position as regulatory health program coordinator with the Food and Drug Administration, Kiprop is taking everything she gained from her TWU experience and applying it to her future.

Health Promotion and Kinesiology students selected for experiential program

10/8/20

Experiential projects at Texas Woman’s encourage learning through a dynamic process where students develop knowledge, skills and values from direct experiences outside of a traditional academic setting. Four School of Health Promotion and Kinesiology PhD students will be doing just that thanks to the 2020-2021 Experiential Student Scholars Program offered by the TWU Pioneer Center for Student Excellence.

TWU PhD student uses research fellowship to assist underserved populations

9/28/20

With a passion for providing care to underserved populations, Texas Woman’s doctoral candidate Daytheon Sturges (health studies) plans to advance justice, equity, diversity and inclusion in medicine. His recent selection as a recipient of the 2020 Breitman-Dorn Endowed Research Fellowship will help, along with his education, research funding and work experience as a physician assistant (PA).

TWU researchers explore equine therapy as treatment for Parkinson’s disease

9/1/20

Texas Woman’s researchers will launch a first-of-its-kind study this year when they investigate how equine-assisted therapy could benefit adults with Parkinson’s disease, thanks to a research grant awarded by the Human Animal Bond Research Institute (HABRI).

TWU faculty member receives Cancer/CHD Research Completion Award

7/3/20

Texas Woman’s School of Health Promotion and Kinesiology Assistant Professor Ann Amuta, PhD, MPH, received a $5,000 Cancer/CHD Research Completion Award from the UNM Comprehensive Cancer Center, funded by the National Institutes of Health.

Pursuing knowledge to help others: PhD in kinesiology graduate Manisha Rao

6/3/20

Working as a physical therapist in Maharashtra, India, Texas Woman’s kinesiology doctoral May graduate Manisha Rao (MS ’13) provided rehabilitative support to patients with medical, neurological and orthopedic conditions. But, as she helped patients with their rehabilitation, she felt the need to upgrade her knowledge and skills on therapeutic exercise.

TWU PhD candidate has article published and proposal accepted

6/1/20

TWU PhD candidate in health studies Daytheon Sturges, MPAS, PA-C, CAHIMS, CHES®, had his co-authored article, “Diversity and Inclusion-Centered PA Programmatic Response During the COVID-19 Pandemic,” published by the Physician Assistant Education Association (PAEA).

TWU students enhance their skills by attending virtual conference

5/22/20

Fifteen Texas Woman’s School of Health Promotion and Kinesiology students received an outstanding professional development opportunity by attending Move United’s 2020 Virtual Leadership Conference May 11-15.

TWU team exhibits creativity and collaboration in design competition

4/30/20

Texas Woman’s kinesiology students once again demonstrated their creativity, ingenuity and ability to work across disciplines by competing in the Texas Space Grant Consortium Design Challenge Showcase April 23-24. The TWU Good Vibrations spring team placed sixth in the overall top design teams and third for Best Peer Review.

Answering the call to serve: Students help communities during pandemic

4/9/20

In response to the coronavirus pandemic, people are continuing to find ways to help their friends, neighbors and local communities— and TWU students are no exception. Several College of Health Sciences students have taken up the call to help however they can.

TWU earns second place in Student Bowl Competition; faculty and students awarded

3/5/20

Two teams of kinesiology students proudly represented Texas Woman’s and the School of Health Promotion and Kinesiology by competing in the Texas Chapter of the American College of Sports Medicine (TACSM) Student Bowl Competition against 36 teams representing 23 universities. The TWU Maroon Team, which earned second place in the competition, consisted of Kylie Eynon, Maddie Hoffman and Dreanna McAdams. The TWU White Team consisted of Samantha Brandt, Madeline Boutwell and Ansah Qureshi.

Associate Professor Rhett Rigby discusses how horse riding plus brain-building exercises may help kids with autism, ADHD

2/28/20

Associate Professor Rhett Rigby, PhD, researches how a combination of horseback riding and brain-building activities may help improve motor skills in children with neurodevelopmental conditions like autism-spectrum disorders and ADHD.

TWU doctoral student receives NCHEC Outstanding Service and Leadership Award

2/11/20

Morgan Grant, a Texas Woman’s University health promotion and kinesiology PhD student, received the 2019 Outstanding Service and Leadership Award in the Emerging Professionals category from the National Commission for Health Education Credentialing (NCHEC).

Golfing career set stage for Kanwar’s research interest

12/18/19

Kiran Kanwar’s area of research may not be the kind you’d expect to be conducted on a typical college campus. But then, Kanwar isn’t your typical researcher. 

At 63, she just completed her Ph.D. in kinesiology with a concentration in biomechanics.

Detour marks leadership path for TWU senior

12/4/18

Just before she transferred to Texas Woman’s University, Kyra Solis’ career plan seemed set: First, a nursing school education and then a steady position with a hospital or doctor’s group. But a dose of reality hit her shortly after her transfer, when she learned that getting into nursing school wasn’t as easy as she thought. Her grades were good enough, but the competition was fierce. 

A frank discussion with an academic adviser got her thinking about another academic opportunity, and in a similar direction: Health Studies.

TWU team tackles astronaut shoulder injuries in NASA competition

11/19/19

Texas Woman’s University sends its third team of senior undergraduate kinesiology students to the Texas Space Grant Consortium Design Challenge Showcase in Houston this week. They will compete against engineering and technology teams from universities across the state who are working to solve research problems identified by NASA. TWU’s Good Vibrations will be the only team to have a project focused on the human aspect of space travel.

TWU alum continues family legacy and grows State Fair empire

10/1/19

TWU alumna Amber Fletcher has had quite a journey from carnival kid to successful entrepreneur. As the head of marketing for her family’s business, the multi-million-dollar Texas staple Fletcher’s Original State Fair Corny Dogs, she is making waves and forging new paths as a third-generation business owner.

TWU hosting sports camp for visually impaired

7/19/19

A unique sports camp for students who are blind, visually impaired or deafblind has set up shop at Texas Woman's University in Denton. Camp Abilities Texas gives local children and teens with sight impairments the chance to experience sports like gymnastics, swimming, indoor rock climbing, tandem biking and beep baseball. Camp instructors, many of whom are enrolled in the School of Health Promotion and Kinesiology, get hands-on experience in their fields while also giving campers one-on-one instruction in adapted physical education. The one-week camp, which is put on by the Denton Public School Foundation, takes place each summer.

Texas Woman’s doctoral student named 2019-20 Schweitzer Fellow

6/17/19

Morgan Grant, a Texas Woman’s University health promotion and kinesiology Ph.D. student from Valdosta, Georgia, will spend the next year creating a sexual health empowerment and education program through a prestigious Dallas-Fort Worth Albert Schweitzer Fellowship. Grant, who earned his MBA from TWU in 2017 and recently became certified as a health education specialist, will work with a community agency to address HIV/STD prevention for minority and at-risk populations who identify as a member of the LGBTQIA community in the Dallas-Fort Worth area.