Ohio University School of Recreation and Sport Sciences

Dr. Beth VanDerveer
Years at OU:
18 ½

Degree/Institution:
Ph.D. in Recreation Administration, Government Minor; Texas Woman's University, 1989
M.S. Exercise Science; University of Idaho, 1980
B.S. in Recreation, Therapeutic Recreation Concentration; Indiana University, 1976

Research Interests:
  Rural Aging and Quality of Life

Courses You Typically Teach:
HLTH 405 (Co-Instructing) Interprofessional Gerontology  
PESS 421/521 Principles of Aging and Physical Activity
REC 275 Recreation for Individuals with Disabilities
REC 351 Recreation Leadership
REC 449 Recreation Administration
UC 190 New First Year Student Experience

Hobbies:
Reading, Gardening, Bridge, Antiquing

Favorite Recreation Destination:
Chautauqua Institution, Chautauqua, New York

Fondest Recreation Memory:
Hawaii

Favorite Quote:
"Ability hits the mark where presumption overshoots and diffidence falls short." (Golda Meir)

Dr. Bruce Martin
Years at OU:
2 ½

Degree/Institution:
Ph.D. Social Foundations of Educations, University of Virginia, 2000
M.S. Human Dimensions of Natural Resources, Colorado State University, 2007
M.S. Experiential Education, Minnesota State University, 1994
B.A. History, Virginia Commonwealth University, 1992

Research Interests:
Outdoor leadership, Environmental ethics, Experiential education, Psychosocial processes and outcomes related to adventure programming.

Courses you typically teach:
REC 215 Outdoor Recreation & Education
REC 324/524 Outdoor Leadership
REC 445 Research & Evaluation in Recreation & Leisure
REC 475/675 Adventure Programming

Hobbies:
Spending time with my wife Sirlei and our two daughters.

Favorite Recreational Destination:
The water—any body of water.

Fondest Recreation Memory:
Cross-country road trips with my family while growing up to places like Yellowstone, Glacier, Yosemite, and Grand Canyon National Parks.

Favorite Quote:
“The more you learn, the more you realize how little you know." (Socrates)




Dr. Robin D. Mittelstaedt
Years at OU:
18

Degree/Institution:
Statistics & Research Methodology and Social Psychology of Leisure Behavior/University of Oregon

Research Interests:
Social-Psychology of Leisure Behavior; Self-Efficacy; Women in the Outdoors; Becoming an Outdoors Woman [both in Ohio and Alaska] Theory of Flow and Rock-Climbing, and for WW Kayaking; EXTREME Sport of Base Jumping, Research methodologies [quantitative and qualitative], psychometrics, measurement, and scale development – in particular the Outdoor Recreation Self-Efficacy (ORSE) scale the I’m developing.

Courses you typically teach:
PESS 608 Research and Statistics
REC 649 Administration of Recreation
REC 445 Research and Evaluation Methods in Recreation
REC 460 Concepts and Issues in Leisure

Favorite Recreational Destination:
Guemes Island, San Juan Islands, Washington

Fondest Recreation Memory:
Working as a mountaineering instructor for Summit Expedition from 1983-1985 leading courses in California in the Sierra Nevada Mountains, and in the Joshua Tree/Twenty-Nine Palms desert region, and team-building workshops on Catalina Island. My ONE fondest memory was one of the “Women’s Only” courses that I led.  Our group of 9 women climbed both Mount Ritter [Elevation 13,143 feet] and Banner Peak [Elevation 12,936 feet] during a 7-day trip in 1983.  It was awesome and truly gnarly!

Favorite Quote:
“Life is a series of mountain climbs with many beautiful summits along the way” (RD Mittelstaedt)




Dr. Aiko Yoshino
Years at OU:
½ year

Degree/Institution:
Ph. D., Indiana University

Research Interests:
My interests are rooted in the relationship between the human and natural environment, particularly the development of psychological constructs through adventure education, such as psychological growth, environmental stewardship, and multi-cultural communication skills.

Courses you typically teach:
At Ohio University
REC 200 Introduction to Recreation and Leisure Services
REC 617 Leisure and Sport in Society
REC 305 Recreation Areas and Facilities
REC 601 Issues in Recreation and Leisure
REC 474/574 Facilitating the Adventure Experience

At Indiana University
R272 Activities and Leadership Methods
R367 Leisure Program Development
U495 Seminar in Leadership Training
U211 Community Development and Wellness

Field-based courses include:
Leave No Trace Ethics, Backpacking, Rock Climbing, Intermediate Rock Climbing, Maps & Compass, WEA (Wilderness Education Association) courses, and NOLS (National Outdoor Leadership School) Courses, etc.


Hobbies: Walking, rock climbing, reading, overseas travels, eating yogurt, watching international movies

Favorite Recreational Destination:
Grand Tetons in US, El Puerto Chico in Mexico,  Hokkaido in Japan, Sagamatha National Park in Nepal

Fondest Recreation Memories:
Snow camping at the Olympic Hot Springs on New Year’s Eve; 18-hour hike/climb to Mt. Grand Teton with 2 good friends; Hanging out with Sherpa cooking crews in a base camp

Favorite Quote:
“That which does not kill us makes us stronger” (Friedrich Nietzsche)




Danny Twilley, M.S.
Years at OU:
3 years teaching; 1 as a graduate student. For a total of 4 great years!!!

Degree/Institution:
M.S.: Recreation and Sports Studies, Ohio University, August 2005
Emphasis: Recreation Studies

B.S.: Physical Education, Salisbury University, December 2000
Concentration: Outdoor Education
Minor: Environmental Studies

Courses you typically teach:
REC 200 Introduction to Recreation & Leisure
REC 295 Outdoor Pursuits for Physical Educators
REC 305 Recreation Areas and Facilities
REC 310 Recreation Programming
REC 314 Expedition Management
REC 405 Internship Seminar
REC 418 Wilderness Literature

Hobbies:
That depends on the season. When the weather/season is good I like to kayak some whitewater, climb some rock, hike/climb a mountain or two, and occasionally take a bike ride. Most recently I have been trying to pick up tele skiing, but my location makes it more of a dream than a reality. When the weather is bad I like to remodel or destroy the house (depends on how you look at it), play in the “man cave”, watch a good movie, try to make music on the guitar, read a book or magazine, and spend time with my better half and our dog, Carrigan.

Favorite Recreational Destination:
That depends on the activity and the people I am with, but I will have to say you cannot beat the good old mountain state of West Virginia for good high quality outdoor recreational activities  

Fondest Recreation Memory:
I will have to say the first time I ever tried to surf. I grew up on the beaches of Maryland and my track coach, Mr. Zerkel, was also a life guard. One day he told me to grab his surfboard from his car and try to surf (his car was an old beat-up station wagon without a back window. Very Classic!). The first wave I caught I stood up and rode it right down the line PERFECTLY. I thought : heck, surfing is easy! Well, that was the last time I rode a wave down the line for the next 3 months - I spent most of the time getting worked.

Favorite Quote:
“Everybody needs beauty as well as bread, places to play in and pray in, where nature may heal and give strength to body and soul.” (John Muir)