After being postponed in 2021, the NCAA Innovations in Research and Practice Grant Program has returned. For the first time since the grant's inception in 2014, the majority of funded projects will be at Division II schools. During the 2022-23 academic year, five research teams will receive a total of $100,000 to conduct projects designed to enhance college athletes' psychosocial well-being and mental health.
Panel chair Eric Laudano said, "We had an incredible level of interest from the membership this year. Over 100 proposals were submitted, and with so many great ideas, it was a challenge for the panel to determine the grant recipients. We're confident that these five innovative programs will be beneficial to the student-athletes on the receiving campuses in the coming year. Better yet, we feel that the membership will have a lot to gain as these grantees share their findings and make their resources widely available next year."
The panel that reviewed the 124 proposals and selected the grant awardees represented all three NCAA divisions and was composed of athletics administrators, faculty athletics representatives, current student-athletes, a mental health clinician, a coach and a sports medicine professional. The reviewers felt confident the funded pilot programs will lead to programs that other colleges and universities can adopt for use on their campuses or adapt to fit their local needs.
This is the eighth year of the NCAA Innovations in Research and Practice Grant Program. These five teams will make their findings available to the membership during the 2023-24 academic year:
Boston U.
Project: Applied intervention program to enhance student-athlete recovery-stress balance state.
Project team: Edson Filho, Ph.D.; Tony Chen; Piotr Piasecki; and Dhruv Ramah.
Northern State
Project: Athlete mental health monitoring and mental health literacy training for coaches and athletes.
Project team: Kelsie Roberts, Ph.D.; Lauren Pierce, Ph.D.; Shalini Mathew, Ph.D., NCC; Chelsee Shortt, Ph.D.; and Shelby Novotny.
Rowan
Project: Educational sessions incorporating yoga and mental health strategies to support athlete wellness.
Project team: JoAnne Bullard, Psy.D.; SoJung Kim, Ph.D.; Amy Hoch, Psy.D.; and June Solow.
Texas A&M-Kingsville
Project: Using gamification to enhance first-year student-athletes' academic self-efficacy and well-being.
Project team: Amber Shipherd, Ph.D., and Hanna Lantz, M.Ed.
Colorado-Colorado Springs
Project: Comprehensive educational program to help student-athletes gain tools and resources to support identity development, healthy relationships, goal setting and holistic wellness.
Project team: Jess Kirby, Ph.D.; Margaret Harris, Ph.D.; Keston Lindsay, Ph.D.; Nathan Gibson; Benek Altayli, Psy.D.; Audrey Bloomquist; and Lindsey Visscher.
Members of the external review panel, which selected the grant recipients:
- Panel chair Eric Laudano, senior associate athletics director for high performance, Saint Joseph's.
- JP Abercrumbie, executive associate athletics director for culture and engagement, Notre Dame.
- Matt Akins, associate director of athletics, Saint Michael's.
- Samantha Benzing, assistant coach, Nordic skiing, St. Scholastica.
- Devi Dudley, student-athlete, Clemson.
- S. Marlon Gayadeen, faculty athletics representative, Buffalo State.
- Emilie Grand'Pierre, student-athlete, Bowdoin.
- Scott Hamilton, clinical counselor, DePauw.
- Marisol Quiroz, director of CATS Academics, Arizona.
- Natalie Welch, faculty athletics representative, Linfield.
