Paul Wright, Illinois Scholar of the Year, Illinois Association for Health, Physical Education, Recreation, and Dance (IAHPERD), 2022.
Jenn Jacobs, Journal of Sport for Development, Early Career Scholar Award, 2021.
Paul Wright, Journal of Teaching in Physical Education, Metzler-Freedman Exemplary Paper Award, 2021.
Jenn Jacobs, University of Illinois College of Applied Health Sciences, Young Alumni Award, 2021.
Zach Wahl-Alexander, NIU College of Education, Excellence in Outreach/Community Service, 2020.
Jenn Jacobs, NIU College of Education, Exceptional Contributions to Diversity and Social Justice Award, 2020.
Paul Wright, NIU College of Education, Lane-Zimmerman Endowed Professorship, 2020.
Zach Wahl-Alexander, SHAPE America, Research Consortium Fellow, 2020.
Victoria Shiver, AIESEP, Young Scholar Award, 2019.
Jim Ressler, NIU College of Education, Senior Faculty Fellow, 2019.
Paul Wright, NIU Presidential Engagement Professorship, 2018
Steve Howell, Mid-American Conference Academic Leadership Development Fellow, 2018
Selected Projects
Southeast Asian martial arts curriculum development. Wright with Center for Southeast Asian Studies at Northern Illinois University, 2024
Evaluation of an after-school soccer program designed to promote social and emotional learning. Wright, Kuipers, Fetters and Pasillas. Contracted by Chicago Fire Foundation. 2014-present.
Evaluation of Camp Power summer camp program. Wright and Kuipers. Contracted by Kishwaukee YMCA. 2014-present.
Morgridge Research Partnership Accelerator Grant, Transformative Social and Emotional Learning in Physical Education. Wright with Ricklefs, Ressler and Shiver, $20,000, College of Education, Northern Illinois University, 2021.
A Comprehensive Sport Leadership and College Readiness Program for Incarcerated Youth. Illinois Department of Juvenile Justice, $45,000, Jacobs & Zach Wahl-Alexander, 2020.
United States Youth Soccer school intervention: Building youth character and soccer enjoyment, United States Youth Soccer Association. Kelly Simonton, University of Memphis, project director with Shiver, 2020.
She Believes in Belize: The First National Women’s Sports Summit. Jacobs and Kuipers, Citizen Action Fund, U.S. Department of State, $10,000, 2019.
Training teachers/coaches in Hellison’s Teaching Personal and Social Responsibility Model. Association for Applied Sport Psychology Seed Grant, $500, Kuipers and Jacobs, Northern Illinois University, 2019.
Locked In, Not Locked Up: A Targeted Intervention to Increase College Readiness of Incarcerated Youth. NIU Great Journeys Assistantship Program, $13,500, Jacobs and Wahl-Alexander, 2020.
Project FLEX Leaders Program: Taking it to the next level. Northern Illinois Great Journeys, $14,330, Wahl-Alexander and Jacobs, 2019.
Assessing the Impact of a Physical Activity-based Summer Camp on Psychological and Physical Outcomes for a Diverse Urban Youth Population. NIU College of Education Dean's Research Grant, $2,500, Henert and Jacobs, 2019.
ENVEST Sri Lanka. Wright and Jacobs, project directors, with Howell and Ressler. A $50,158 sub-award from Virginia Commonwealth University as part of a cooperative agreement funded by the U.S. Department of State, Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs, 2017-2018.
Belizean Youth Sport Coalition (BYSC): Promoting youth development and social change through sport. Wright, project director, with Jacobs, Ressler and Howell. Grant funded for $224,956 by the U.S. Department of State, Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs, 2013-2016.