MIRANDA MARITATO | Staff Reporter
The College of Education will offer recreation and sports studies as a new minor starting in fall 2014.
The minor is designed for students looking to engage in health, physical activity, recreation and sports outside of school studies said Mindy Welch associate professor of physical education.
Welch is also the coordinator for the COE’s human movement and health science education program and has been working to move the minor forward.
“It started with the faculty in our major in the College of Education, human movement and health science education,” Welch said. “We’re all about fostering and advocating for lifelong physical activity. We wanted to come up with a way that allows all students to learn and engage in the content.”
The minor formalizes the collaboration between COE and the Health and Recreation Complex.
“So many of our students work at the HRC and (the College of Ecucation) teaches classes there, so there’s just a natural synergy between our major and the College of Education and the mission of the HRC,” Welch said. “At the beginning of this year, we came up with this idea of a minor that would be open to all students on Butler’s campus.”
Recreation and sporrt studies requires 18 credit hours. The courses consist of 13 hours of required courses and three electives.
Students must take three of six skill series classes in Physical Education 202-207. These courses range from basketball to pickleball. The elective courses include officiating volleyball and basketball.
Lisa Farley, assistant professor of physical education said she has noticed an interest in the curriculum from Butler students.
“It seemed like there was a lot of interest out there where people had dipped their toes in the program and really liked their own major but wanted to get some excess information,” Farley said.
Thirty-one percent of students enrolled in PE 261 Theory of Practice and Coaching, had been non-majors, according to a Butler press release earlier this month. The course is required for the recreation and sports studies minor.
Junior Molly Dunn is a human movement and health science major. She is pursuing physical education and exercise science for a career.
“With basically a double major, this minor will make me even more marketable once I graduate from Butler,” Dunn said. “I currently have worked at the HRC for two full years, which sparked my interest in the recreation and sports studies minor.”
Based off of the basic curriculum for her major, Dunn has already taken credits that go toward a minor in Recreation and sports studies.
“I have taken all but six credit hours of the classes required for the minor,” Dunn said. “Not only do I have an interest in recreation, I also have three-fourths of the classes completed. I was like, ‘why not pursue the minor.”
Students interested in the minor can visit the Starbucks table today at noon for more information.
