Professor Ann MacPhail, pictured below, is Assistant Dean Research in Education and Health Sciences and a faculty member in the Department of Physical Education and Sport Sciences at UL
Wednesday, 14 October 2020

A professor at University of Limerick is one of just three international fellows who has been inducted into the National Academy of Kinesiology in the United States.

Professor Ann MacPhail, Assistant Dean Research in Education and Health Sciences and a faculty member in the Department of Physical Education and Sport Sciences at UL, was announced as part of a recent induction to the US National Academy of Kinesiology (NAK) at a virtual ceremony.

Ten US scholars and three international scholars were inducted to the academy, an honorary organisation composed of Fellows who have made distinguished and sustained contributions to the field of kinesiology through scholarship and professional service.

Fellows in the National Academy of Kinesiology reflect a “who’s who” of eminent scholars in the field.

Professor MacPhail said it was “a true honour to be inducted to the US National Academy of Kinesiology, achieving one of the highest honours the field of Kinesiology has to offer.

“Election into the Academy is recognition of the high esteem and respect colleagues hold for my significant international scholarship and leadership in the field of kinesiology,” she added.

The dual purpose of the NAK is to encourage and promote the study and educational applications of the art and science of human movement and physical activity and to honour by election to Fellow those individuals who have moved the field forward as a direct result of their scholarly and professional contributions.

President of the NAK Ron Zernicke said it was his “privilege and honour” to announce the recent induction of Professor MacPhail as an International Fellow in the NAK’s Class of 2020 New Fellows.

“This distinguished cadre of scholars spans the wide diversity of the kinesiology disciplines from bench/lab scientists to social scientists,” he explained.

Professor MacPhail joined the Department of PESS in September 2002 and was Head of Department from August 2012 to August 2017. Prior to joining the department, Ann was a Research Associate at Loughborough University for over three years.

Her main teaching and research interests revolve around (physical education) teacher education, instructional alignment, curriculum development, teaching, learning and assessment issues within school physical education, methodological issues in working with young people and ethnography.