Counseling and Human Development Services

Recreation and Leisure Studies

Masters 2008

grad student Lauren Boyce
I am a native of Cleveland, Ohio and a 2006 graduate of Winston Salem State Univeristy in Winston, Salem, NC. I have a BS in Sports Management with a concentration of Sports Communication. For the past two years I worked for the Mid-American Conference doing both Football Operations and Sports Information. While at UGA I plan to concentrate on Recreation Administration and Facilities Management while also learning more about Camp Administration. In my spare time I enjoy watching sports, listening to Jay-z, spending time with close friends and family and working as the editor-in-chief of "Precious Pearls" magazine. Once I receive my Masters in Recreation and Leisure Studies I plan to pursue a career in program development for recreation centers and camp sites while doing some event managementaswell. It is truly an honor and a blessing to be apart of the UGA family, I am proud to be a BULLDAWG!

grad student Jason Brewer
I am originally from the gulf coast town of Niceville, FL, and I am a graduate of the University of Florida where I majored in History. I worked with recreational sports at UF and I want to continue working in the field at a college or parks and recreation department. I believe sport has the power to bring people together and I want to be a part of that. In my spare time I enjoy playing soccer, softball, golf, and racquetball. I also enjoy officiating several sports. On weekends I can usually be found with friends at a local Irish pub. I am looking forward to exploring all that Athens has to offer.

grad student Cory Cason
I received my undergraduate degree here at UGA from the Department of Education. My major was Sports Studies. I worked with the Men’s Basketball team here at UGA since my freshman year and now I am taking over as their Graduate Assistant. I graduated high school on 2003 from Pike County High (home of the Pirates). I am a huge sports fan. The Bulldogs are my top team of course, but I am also a Hawks, Braves, and sadly a Falcons fan. I also enjoy watching movies and hanging out with my fiancé, Deven, in my spare time. I hope to obtain my graduate degree by May of 2010.

grad student Karley Counts
I was born and raised in Clearwater, Florida; not too far from beaches. I received a bachelor of health science and a minor of family, youth, and community sciences from the University of Florida in 2008. During my time spent at the University, I began working with the Department of Recreational Sports to help me meet new people, earn some extra money, and find a different way to spend my time. After a few weeks of officiating basketball and meeting some of the best people I in the world, I began to find that this side job could potentially lead to a career. A few years later, here I am at the University of Georgia getting ready to pursue a career in Campus recreation.

grad student Raymond Fulcher
I am from Harlem, Georgia (Outside of Augusta) and am 23 years old. I graduated from UGA in May of 2008 with a degree in Social Science Education. I love being at the University and am very excited to be continuing my education in the field of Recreation and Leisure studies. I am currently a Graduate Assistant with the Georgia Football team where I assist in team practices and games and also work with a group of 12 other undergraduate students to manage the team’s uniforms and various types of equipment. Though I have many interests in life, I have true passion for three main things. They are music (I play the guitar), sports, and wildlife/outdoors. While in Recreation and Leisure studies, I hope to focus on one or more of these things and find different ways to incorporate these interests into my eventual career. Ultimately, I am excited about to learn what Recreation and Leisure Studies holds in store for my future.

grad student Sara Kate Greene
I was born and raised in a small town outside of Atlanta known as Lilburn, Georgia. After graduating from the University of Georgia in May 2008 with a degree in Sports Studies, I decided to further my education and pursue a masters degree in Recreation and Leisure Studies.I am really excited about this opportunity and everything that the program here at UGA has to offer. Outside of pursuing my masters degree, I am a graduate assistant for the Women'sBasketball at UGA. I have always had a passion for basketball, and now being able to help out with the team here is like a dream come true. After playing for the team here, I couldn't have asked for a better group of role models to do my assistantship with.

grad student Sarah Litowich
I graduated from UGA in 2007 with a degree in Music. Through my summer and student jobs I discovered my interest in recreation. I love my job in the aquatics department at Ramsey. I began as a lifeguard and progressed to manager, safety instructor, senior manager, and am the graduate assistant for aquatics. I love Athens. I’ve lived in the Athens area since I was in the 7th grade and I never want to leave. I enjoy making new friends and spending time with them. Other than the pool . . . I enjoy music, movies, tennis, smoothies, and my old school Nintendo.

grad student Susan Powell
I am originally from Kentucky, obtaining a B.S. in Recreation and Park Administration from Eastern Kentucky University. I moved to the Atlanta, Georgia area in 2003 and have been working at a residential treatment facility for youth with emotional and behavioral problems as a Recreation Therapist. I am currently working towards a M.A. in Recreation Studies and have an assistantship with the Kinesiology department teaching several basic physical education classes to undergraduate students. My main interests include outdoor recreation, experiential education and leadership, and therapeutic recreation. My personal hobbies include long-distance hiking/backpacking, paddling, climbing/ropes, caving, biking, and rugby.

grad student Matthew Strickland
I am truly a renaissance man, with a varied background. Although I have been lifeguarding and involved with aquatics since 1990, my formal educational experiences include music, and special education. Teaching in both of these areas has allowed me opportunities in the public school system of Georgia, and in the private music schools of Boston, Massachusetts, as well as sending me on tour with the Moscow State Symphony Orchestra. More recently, I have served as Interim Director of Education for the American Red Cross, East Georgia Chapter. I am currently a lifeguard manager and instructor with UGA’s Rec Sports Aquatics Program. I also hold a position as Aquatics Director for the Lake Arrowhead Yacht & Country Club. I enjoy all forms of music, art, and literature, the culinary arts and entertaining, domestic and international travel, and the three S’s, singing, swimming, and saving lives.

grad student Rose Tahash
I am originally from Michigan but grew up all over the Eastern U.S. and have lived in Athens for the past eight years. I graduated with a B.A. in English from UGA and have worked here for almost 3 years in the Political Science department and the Graduate School. I am pursuing study in outdoor recreation and hope to also study conservation ecology and sustainable development. My ultimate career goal is to work with an organization that deals with outdoor recreation areas like parks, non-roaded forests, and trails/greenways. I love outdoor activities such as camping, hiking and swimming. I also enjoy cooking, reading, Tae Bo and movies/music and hope to travel or study abroad. My husband Adrian and I live with our 3 cats in central Athens.

grad student Denny Teason
I have recently moved to Athens with my girlfriend Sarah. We are both excited about the outdoor activities that the area has to offer: Particularly the biking and kayaking. I am eager to explore and utilize all of Athens’ parks and recreation facilities and am enchanted by the music scene. I have always enjoyed working with and for people. It is this compassion that has caused me to gravitate to the field of recreation and leisure. After earning a bachelor’s degree in Sports Management from the University of Massachusetts at Amherst I was left feeling that my purpose was not to be a small fish in the very big pond that is business, but instead to be a philanthropist in serving my fellow man.

grad student Chip Woodruff
My name is Robert Nick Woodruff II, but I go by Chip. I am a 2006 graduate of Georgia Southwestern State University in Americus, Georgia. Byromville, GA; a small town just outside of Americus, is where I call home. Before attending GSW, I attended Darton College in Albany, GA on a varsity swimming scholarship. My life consists mostly of school, work, and exercise. I am hoping that one day my education will lead to me working in the recreation field with college students, as either a recreation professor or student recreation professional. Along with my studies, I enjoy staying physically active. I lift weights, swim, go canoeing/kayaking and compete in just about any sport that I can find. I particularly enjoy training Muay Thai kickboxing and competing in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu.

Doctoral 2008

grad student Gail Taylor Baldwin
As a doctoral student my areas of research are: 1) Persons of all ages, ethnicities and abilities: Mental and physical health, social support and motivation, living situations, and barriers to life quality. 2) Art as an adjunct to psychological and physical healing process. 3) Teaching effectiveness. In 1975 my greatest accomplishment arrived: Marlene Huntley Baldwin, now a nursing student at Penn State. I have a UGA BFA, MHP and Gerontology certificate. Gail Baldwin Interiors, LLC, was established in 1982, and is current; our interiors span the eastern US to Saudi Arabia. Professor emeritus Robert Willett is my best friend and roommate on the east side of Athens

grad student Rob Dussler
I am from Houston, Texas and I have lived in Georgia for the past 10 years. I earned a B.A. in Psychology from St. Edward’s University located in Austin, Texas, in 1991. I moved to Georgia in 1992 to continue my education. I fell in love with the mountains and streams of Georgia and the southeast. I proceeded to teach high school English for four years including a year at an Expeditionary Learning Outward Bound School in Atlanta. In this process I combined my love for teaching, youth and the out of doors. I earned my MEd. in Outdoor Education Administration from Georgia College and State University located in Milledgeville, Georgia in May of 2002. I am currently a professor and Director of Outdoor Education at Young Harris College. My passions include whitewater kayaking, fly- fishing, teaching, coffee, and being with my wife (Anna) and kiddos (Gus - 2 yrs. and Tillie - 5 months).

grad student Nic Holt
I am a native of Athens, Georgia. I hold degrees in Classical Culture and in Instructional Technology from the University of Georgia. For the past six years, I have worked for the College of Education in the Learning and Performance Support Laboratory as the technical manger. Prior to taking that position, I produced the International Kudzu Film Festival from 1998 through 2002. My current research interests are centered on cyber-culture, gaming, and other informal learning environments.

grad student Amanda Jarriel
I am a doctoral candidate in Recreation and Leisure Studies in the Department of Counseling and Human Development Services. I am currently an instructor in Athletic Training at Georgia College and State University. I have also worked here the previous two years as an instructor for both the Exercise Science and Community Health Programs.I completed a B.S. in Athletic Training and a M.Ed. in Health Promotion from Georgia College and State University as well. I am a certified Athletic Trainer and a Certified Health Education Specialist. My research interests include motivations for physical activity through leisure in aging populations, gender and leisure, leisure in Alzheimer’s patients. I hope to begin my dissertation in the Spring. On a lighter note, in my free time I love to cook and play with my black lab Stone.

grad student Joseph Pate
I am originally from Atlanta, Georgia and have spent the past 6 years at Pfeiffer University in North Carolina serving as the Director for the Center for Outdoor Leadership. I am married to my wonderful wife Jenny, and we have two human children – Abby and Wes – and one canine child – Cloe. We are excited to return home to Georgia and look forward to being part of this community. I enjoy hiking, paddling, turning wood, gardening and reading. Bob Dylan is the man, and Siddhartha is my favorite book. I am really into myths, metaphors, symbols and making meaning out of our collective journeys.

grad student Laurel Richmond
I graduated from Northern Arizona University in Flagstaff, Arizona with a bachelor’s degree in Parks and Recreation Management with a Community and Commercial emphasis. I then worked for the City of Flagstaff as a Recreation Coordinator. Next, I was lucky enough to find a position with the City of Santa Monica as an Aquatic Supervisor. I also taught water aerobics classes both for the public and at the community college level. I attended California State University, Long Beach for my master’s degree in Recreation and Leisure Studies. My specific areas of interest include critical theory, race, and attitudes towards free time. As a University of Georgia doctoral student, I hope to expand my knowledge of teaching and research practices. Eventually, I would like to teach at the university level.

grad student Jason Whiting
I had the good fortune of spending my childhood growing up at base of the Wasatch Mountains. When I turned nineteen I moved to Venezuela where I spent two years working as a missionary. After returning home I met my wife, Rachel. Shortly after we were married, we moved from Idaho to Colorado. I received my bachelor’s degree from Western State College of Colorado. My master’s studies took me to Illinois where I received a M.S. from Western Illinois University. I have worked as a river guide, trip leader, challenge course manager, E.M.T., and backcountry ski instructor. I have taught at Colorado Northwestern Community College and Western Illinois University. I enjoy traveling and spending time outdoors with my wife and two daughters, Brighton and Abbie.