An Elon University assistant professor, and a junior sport and event management major, will have prominent roles in the collegiate recreational sports organization, particularly with issues relating to its April 2016 conference held in Kissimmee, Florida.
Sport and event management major Ryan Bennett ’16 (left) and Cara McFadden, assistant professor of sport and event management, were recently appointed to leadership positions by NIRSA: Leaders in Collegiate Recreation.[/caption]Cara McFadden, an assistant professor in Elon University’s Department of Sport and Event Management, and Ryan Bennett ’16, a sport and event management major, were named to leadership positions by NIRSA: Leaders in Collegiate Recreation.
Moving forward, the duo will play prominent roles within the organization that serves as a leading resource for professional and student development, education and research in collegiate recreational sports.
McFadden was selected as program chair for the 2016 NIRSA Annual Conference & Recreational Sports Expo held April 3-6, 2016, in Kissimmee, Florida. As chair, she will coordinate the planning of all education sessions and work with the local Annual Conference Host Committee, NIRSA Board of Directors, NIRSA Headquarters staff, and other stakeholder groups involved in the annual conference’s program.
Bennett, a Leadership Fellow at Elon, was named a member of the NIRSA Leadership Commission – the first undergraduate to be appointed to this commission. Bennett’s fellow commissioners hail from James Madison University, Louisiana State University, University of Dayton and University of South Carolina Aiken.
The Leadership Commission is one of six Strategic Values Commissions serving NIRSA’s vision. The others include: Sustainable Communities; Health & Wellbeing; Equity, Diversity & Inclusion; Global Perspectives; and Professional Registry.
McFadden has been actively involved in NIRSA for 15 years, presenting and serving the association in various leadership positions. Previously, she has served as a member of the organization’s Assembly, committee member for the Research and Assessment Committee, faculty for the National School of Collegiate Recreation, and co-chair for the Leadership Commission.
McFadden and Bennett both attended the organization’s 2015 conference in Dallas, Texas, and its 2014 conference in Nashville, Tennessee. McFadden presented three times at the 2015 event.
In addition to her work in the Department of Sport and Event Management, McFadden is the faculty director for Elon’s Danieley Center Neighborhood.