Drs. Crowley and Magal, along with three former students, attended the 2023 American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM) Annual Meeting & World Congresses in Denver, CO from May 30-June 3. At the conference and under the directorship of Dr. Magal, the three former students presented the findings of their research projects from the 2022-23 academic year. Matan Amitay’s presentation was titled: “Sex Differences In Mid-thigh Isometric Pull Performance Comparing Traditional Bar Grip And Pelvic Belt Methods,” Kelsey Hutchison’s presentation was titled: “Neuromuscular Performance Is Associated With 20- And 40-meter Sprint Times In Female Collegiate Soccer Players” and Isabel Neall’s presentation was titled: “The Relationship Between Jump Performance, Isometric Mid-Thigh Pull, and Reactive Strength In Female Soccer Players.” Matan’s project and travel were supported by The Frank Smith Wilkinson Lectureship Award and Kelsey and Isabel’s project and travel were supported by the Taylor-Crocker Honors Program.
Dr. Shannon Crowley, Associate Professor of Public Health and faculty representative to Exercise is Medicine on Campus (EIM-OC), presented a poster titled: “Sedentary Behavior, Sleep, And Depressive Symptoms After Sport-related Concussion.” On behalf of North Carolina Wesleyan University, Dr. Crowley received the Silver Campus Designation Certification during the EIM-OC recognition ceremony.





NC Wesleyan’s Exercise Science Program Presents at Regional Conference

ROCKY MOUNT, NORTH CAROLINA — On Thursday, February 17 and Friday, February 8 three of NC Wesleyan’s Exercise Science faculty members, along with seven students, attended the regional conference of the American College of Sports Medicine in Greenville, South Carolina. These students and faculty members presented research and tutorials on exercise science, exercise physiology and athletic performance.
Megan Mackey, a Biomedical Sciences honor’s student, and Savannah Chenault, an Exercise Science major, collaborated on a scientific poster titled, “Sleep and Depressive Symptoms After Sport Related Concussion.” This poster was presented by Mackey, a top 8 undergraduate student award finalist. Dr. Shannon Crowley, Associate Professor of Exercise Science, served as the faculty mentor on the project.
This was the first time students in NCWC’s Exercise Science Program participated in the Southeastern Chapter of the American College of Sports Medicine (SEACSM) Student Bowl. Savion Young, Matan Amitay and Savannah Chenault finished the competition in the top ten, surpassing many regional, state and private academic institutions.

“We appreciate the support of the College and the Taylor-Crocker Honors Program that allowed us to expose students to this unique opportunity,” stated Dr. Meir Magal, Professor of Exercise Science and NCWC’s Exercise Science Program Director.
In addition, Dr. Alex Ehlert, Assistant Professor of Exercise Science, presented a poster titled, “Associations Between GPS-Derived Training Metrics and Subjective Readiness Ratings in NCAA Female Soccer Players.” Dr. Meir Magal presented a tutorial titled, “ACSM Certifications: Defining an Exercise Profession and How to Succeed in the Exercise Profession.”
Wesleyan Students Awarded for their Research
Wesleyan Students Awarded for their Research
Biomedical Science seniors, Beverly Anaele and Jawuanna McAllister, presented their research at the NC Academy of Science (NCAS) at UNC Wilmington on March 23, 2019. Both young women have been doing research at NC Wesleyan for the past two years, independently as juniors and later as part of their senior honors theses. Beverly has worked with Dr. Kosal, and Jawuanna has worked with Dr. Stovall.

At the conference, Beverly won the 3rd Place Derieux Award for her oral presentation in the Ecology, Botany, & Zoology category! Her talk was titled “Can a natural plant product, such as the American beautyberry, repel and alter mosquito behavior?” Jawuanna won the 1st Place Derieux Award for her oral talk in the Cell & Molecular Biology and Physiology category. Jawuanna’s talk was “Effect of Caffeine on PALLD Expression and GBM Cell Invasion.”
Both Beverly and Jawuanna have just finished one-year terms as the Secretary and President, respectively, of the Collegiate Academy of NCAS. Both young women are graduating from Wesleyan this semester and have big plans! In August, Beverly, who recently won the Biology Award at the NC Wesleyan Honors Convocation, will begin a Master’s of Public Health program at Thomas Jefferson University, and Jawuanna will start her Ph.D. in Biochemistry, Molecular and Cell Biology at Cornell University.
Congratulations to these outstanding and successful young scientists! The Biology department will be sad to see them go. But, we are so excited to see what they become.
Students & Faculty Attend American College of Sports Medicine Conference


On February 14th and 15th, Drs. Crowley, Henderson and Magal, and four students attended the regional conference of the American College of Sports Medicine in Greenville, SC.
At the conference and under the direction of Dr. Crowley, Mehli Marcellus and Tyler Ricks presented a research project titled: “Factors Influencing Attitude Towards, and Participation in, Physical Activity in Eastern North Carolina”.
Also at the conference, Dr. Meir Magal, Program Director and Professor of Exercise Science together with Mr. Francis Neric, Director of Certifications at the American College of Sports Medicine, has co-presented a tutorial titled: “Graduated Now What? Succeeding in the Exercise Profession”