January 11-17, 2016 marks the 8th annual StFX Faculty Appreciation Week, presented by StFX Athletics. All current and retired StFX faculty members will receive free admission to this week’s varsity games upon presentation of their StFX faculty ID card.

On Friday, Jan. 15th, StFX Athletics will recognize our 61 CIS Academic All-Canadians (StFX student-athletes with 80% average or higher) at a celebratory breakfast.  Each Academic All-Canadian will invite a faculty member to join in the celebration.

As part of Faculty Appreciation week, StFX Athletics will be profiling various faculty members on our website. Today we feature Dr. Dan Robinson from the Education department.

A graduate of the University of Alberta, Dr. Robinson completed a BEd in Elementary Education, a MEd in Secondary Education, and a PhD in Secondary Education (Curriculum Studies, Physical Education).  Prior to his appointment as an Assistant Professor at StFX in 2009, he was an employee of Edmonton Public Schools for 12 years.  At StFX, Dr. Robinson teaches a number of undergraduate BEd courses focused on physical education curriculum and instruction as well as a number of graduate MEd courses focused on curriculum and leadership.  His current research program focuses on culturally relevant physical education, First Nations physical education, Teaching Games for Understanding, physical education teachers’ programs and practices, children’s acquisition of fundamental movement skills, and action research related to gender and physical education. Dr. Robinson has assisted the X-Women hockey team in recent years as their faculty advisor.

What inspires you on a daily basis as a faculty member at StFX University?
Like many of my colleagues, I am most inspired by the students I teach and supervise. Teaching and supervising undergraduate and graduate students constantly reaffirms for me the belief that StFX students are some of the most capable. I find that the presence of high quality students within my classes constantly challenges me to always be purposely aiming to ensure my pedagogy is sound, appropriate, and engaging. They push me to be a better teacher. Moreover, I am truly appreciative of the meaningful relationships I have been able to make with many of them.  I hold so many of them in the highest regard—and I am sure that they know that.

How does involvement in athletics complement success in academics for students?
I am always impressed with the balance that student-athletes are able to achieve in their academic, athletic, and personal lives. Having worked closely with some student-athletes, I see how being effectively forced to juggle many responsibilities has allowed them to seemingly do more than seems possible. I am also always so pleasantly impressed by the support and encouragement student-athletes receive from their teams. In addition to the life-skills focus so clearly inculcated by their coaches, student-athletes benefit from the meaningful social supports offered by their teammates. The young women I work with clearly benefit from the sisterhood their team provides for them. The team gives them the supports they need to be successful in school.

What motivated you to become involved with Athletics at StFX?
A number of things really made that happen:  meeting Coach Dave Synishin when I first moved to Antigonish, working with student-athletes in my own classes, being a hockey fan myself, and wanting to serve my academic community. I know that the coaching staff has plenty of responsibilities. I basically became an Academic Advisor so that I could shoulder some of the responsibility for the team’s academics, particularly for the rookies. Also, I was a high school teacher years ago.  I know the anxiety and tension that comes with moving from grade 12 to university. I am hopeful I am able to help our rookies with this transition.

What advice do you have for students trying to manage their time?
Most student-athletes I work with are able to do this. What they and others can do is to treat each day like a workday. Come to campus from 8:00-4:00.  A day with only 90 minutes of class time should not be looked at as a day with 6.5 hours of free time but, instead, as a day with 6.5 hours to do school work. The other suggestion I would offer is to surround oneself with others who are also interested in doing well academically.