ECU kinesiology student receives national award

Thomas Mahar (Photo by Chuck Baldwin)

East Carolina University student Thomas Mahar was selected as the National American Kinesiology Association Undergraduate Scholar for 2014.

This is the first year that the AKA selected a national winner. Mahar was chosen out of 24 nominations submitted from universities across the country.

The award honors the student whose academic and leadership records are judged to be the most distinctive. Nominees must demonstrate an exceptional interest in the field of kinesiology by undertaking independent or guided research, assuming leadership positions, and having the potential for making a significant impact on the field.

“The opportunities to participate in research including study design, data collection, and presentation have helped me appreciate the entire research process and how important research can be to the quality of life,” said Mahar.

As an undergraduate student, Mahar participated in more than ten scholarly presentations on topics such as complex movement and cognitive function and physical activity assessment by accelerometers and commercially available activity monitors.

He received the ECU Undergraduate Research and Creative Activity Award in 2012 and 2014.

Mahar graduated with a bachelor’s degree in exercise physiology, Department of Kinesiology, in the College of Health and Human Performance on May 9.

“There is no doubt in my mind that Mahar competed well and ultimately won against students across the nation because of the individualized undergraduate research experiences he had leading to presentations and publications,” said Dr. Stacey Altman, chair of the Department of Kinesiology.