Jason Bocarro

The NCAA, along with the ACC, has recognized the growing issue of mental health among student-athletes. This has been exacerbated by the recent Covid pandemic, social and racial issues and increased demands on student athletes’ time. Furthermore, although there is a strong relationship between overuse of technology and mental health challenges, data has shown that athletes’ social media use has increased dramatically. While some of the social media use has been prompted by the commercial opportunities provided by the Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL) legislation that was passed, there is some recent studies highlighting the overall negative effect of social media platforms on athlete mental health and well-being. Despite the increase in mental health issues, there is a concern that institutional resources devoted to supporting the clinical and psychological needs of student-athletes is lacking. This issue has been exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic that has affected university athletic departments’ finances while simultaneously increasing the stress on student-athletes. Although a growing body of research has explored factors behind student-athlete mental health during this pandemic, little research has explored the scope and best practices of mental health services that may be effective in supporting student-athletes. This study will seek to conduct focus groups with 20-25 student athletes across the ACC Schools to provide both context of current issues facing student-athletes and explore their insights of current initiatives and resources designed to provide the best mental health support during a challenging period.

To increase physical activity among African Americans and low-income residents in Edgecombe County, NC State and Edgecombe County Cooperative Extension will 1) increase the number and promotion of shared use policies in community organizations, 2) connect and promote vital physical activity resources through wayfinding and signage, 3) improve connectivity between places people live, learn, work, play and pray through walking and recreation space audits, 4) support and promote walking and biking to and during school, and 5) partner with Recreation Resources Service (RRS), to create and implement a county park and recreation master plan.

The NCAA, along with the ACC, has recognized the growing issue of mental health among student-athletes. Despite the increase in mental health issues, there is a concern that institutional resources devoted to supporting the clinical and psychological needs of student-athletes is lacking. This issue has been exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic that has affected university athletic departments’ finances while simultaneously increasing the stress on student-athletes. Although a growing body of research has explored factors behind student-athlete mental health during this pandemic, little research has explored the scope and best practices of mental health services that may be effective in supporting student-athletes. This study will conduct focus groups with 20 sport psychologists and athletic trainers across the ACC Schools to provide both context of current issues facing student-athletes and explore their insights of current initiatives and resources designed to provide the best mental health support during a challenging period.

To increase physical activity among African Americans and low-income residents in Edgecombe County, NC State Extension will 1) increase the number and promotion of shared use policies and practices in key community organizations, 2) connect and promote vital county and town physical activity resources through wayfinding and signage, 3) support municipalities in improving connectivity between places people live, learn, work, play and pray through walking and recreation space audits, 4) support and promote walking and biking to and during school, and 5) partner with Recreation Resource Services (RRS), the nation’s oldest technical assistance and applied research program for parks and recreation agencies in North Carolina, to create and implement a county and municipal park and recreation master plan.

To increase physical activity among African Americans and low-income residents in Edgecombe County, NC State and Edgecombe County Cooperative Extension will 1) increase the number and promotion of shared use policies in community organizations, 2) connect and promote vital physical activity resources through wayfinding and signage, 3) improve connectivity between places people live, learn, work, play and pray through walking and recreation space audits, 4) support and promote walking and biking to and during school, and 5) partner with Recreation Resources Service (RRS), to create and implement a county park and recreation master plan.

Increasing prevalence of overweight and obesity in the U.S. remains a significant public health concern. Being overweight or obese is associated with increased risk for diabetes, heart disease and a range of other chronic diseases. Research shows that minority and low-income populations are disproportionately affected by obesity compared to the general population. This project, “A Multi-Level Approach to Prevent Obesity: Extension and Engagement in Four North Carolina Counties”, identifies several strategies to prevent obesity in four counties in North Carolina: Lee, Edgecombe, Halifax, and Northampton. By partnering with local Extension offices, health departments, parks and recreation departments, schools, and faith communities, we aim to: 1) increase opportunities for individual education around healthy eating and physical activity, drawing on research-based Extension programming such as EFNEP, SNAP-Education and Faithful Families Eating Smart and Moving More; 2) increase partnerships and supporting coalitions that are focused on increasing access to healthy foods and places to be active; 3) increase the number of organizations (faith communities and schools) and food retail establishments (corner stores and farmers’ markets) that implement healthy food standards or increase access to fresh and local foods; and 4) increase the availability of places to be active through Active Routes to School programs, shared use practices in community organizations, and standards that encourage physical activity in Afterschool setting. Through a comprehensive approach, based on the socio-ecological model, we aim to better understand the role Extension can play in preventing obesity, particularly in low-income and minority communities in North Carolina.

Inefficiencies in the U.S. health care system create barriers to providing the highest quality of prevention and treatment services, particularly for vulnerable communities. What the U.S. spends for health care relative to improvements in population health highlights symptoms of a failing system. Physical activity (PA) has been identified as one of four key modifiable risk behaviors contributing to chronic diseases. Despite evidence that increased PA reduces preventable chronic diseases, health care professionals including primary care doctors may lack knowledge to effectively counsel patients on activity and program options for PA. Community parks and recreation services can play a much larger role in providing both prevention and treatment, offering an alternative and a more cost effective and efficient preventive medical approach. Park Rx programs seek to strengthen the connection between the healthcare system and parks and recreation services. In such programs, physicians and other healthcare providers prescribe to patients’ use of parks and recreation services for prevention and treatment for a range of chronic diseases. This project is a collaborative effort between NC State, two to four Federally Qualified Health Centers, and the NC Division of Public Health (NCDPH), Chronic Disease and Injury Section. We will also engage two key partners: North Carolina Parks and Recreation Association (NCRPA) and Recreation Resources Service (RRS), a state-level technical assistance program that supports public parks and recreation department in all 100 NC counties. These two organizations could potentially coordinate partnerships between parks and recreation departments in the project counties and the volunteer focus group participants. This project will develop an app that would allow FQHC staff and their patients to identify opportunities for physical activity programs and facilities in the patient's community that matches their interest, physical abilities/disabilities, and leisure skills.

The purpose of this project is to create a public facing tool to assess the relative health benefits and risks of playing the most commonly offered sports. The Healthy Sport Index will collect physical activity data for the 10 sports most commonly played by adolescents as determined by the most recent High School Athletics Participation Survey. High school sports were selected because they represent a regulated sport environment with fairly consistent structure and delivery across the nation; they also offer the richest available research and data sets for youth athletes. Specific scope of work activities for this contract include: • Collect data for physical activity measures in Raleigh-Durham and New York City high schools. A minimum of 400 high school athletes in 10 boys sports and 10 girls sports will be evaluated. • Train and manage data collection observers at both locations. • Organize and analyze data for physical activity measures. • Participate in meetings, as a member of the Healthy Sport Index Advisory Group, with travel costs covered by the Institute. Travel costs will also be provided to attend the 2017 and 2018 Project Play Summits. • Participate in regular calls with Institute staff and Advisory Group members. • Produce an academic journal article related to the physical activity findings from the Healthy Sport Index project. • Coordinate with Institute staff to capture psychological insights from the teams being measured about the role of sport in contributing to their motivation to remain active.

Inefficiencies in the U.S. health care system create barriers to providing the highest quality of prevention and treatment services, particularly for vulnerable communities. What the U.S. spends for health care relative to improvements in population health highlights symptoms of a failing system. Physical activity (PA) has been identified as one of four key modifiable risk behaviors contributing to chronic diseases. Despite evidence that increased PA reduces preventable chronic diseases, health care professionals including primary care doctors may lack knowledge to effectively counsel patients on activity and program options for PA. Community parks and recreation services can play a much larger role in providing both prevention and treatment, offering an alternative and a more cost effective and efficient preventive medical approach. Park Rx programs seek to strengthen the connection between the healthcare system and parks and recreation services. In such programs, physicians and other healthcare providers prescribe to patients’ use of parks and recreation services for prevention and treatment for a range of chronic diseases. This project is a collaborative effort between NC State, two to four Federally Qualified Health Centers, and the NC Division of Public Health (NCDPH), Chronic Disease and Injury Section. We will also engage two key partners: North Carolina Parks and Recreation Association (NCRPA) and Recreation Resources Service (RRS), a state-level technical assistance program that supports public parks and recreation department in all 100 NC counties. These two organizations could potentially coordinate partnerships between parks and recreation departments in the project counties and the volunteer focus group participants. This project will develop an app that would allow FQHC staff and their patients to identify opportunities for physical activity programs and facilities in the patient's community that matches their interest, physical abilities/disabilities, and leisure skills.

This research is a collaborative effort between NC State and the NPS that will develop an inventory of historical and current RDI programs, initiatives, services, and activities designed to help NPS realize its vision and achieve its goals in the following areas: Relevancy, Diversity, Inclusion, and Equity. Specifically, the inventory will describe and examine strategies, population(s) targeted, staff, funding, and other resources, external partnerships, and outcomes including whether the activity is site specific or whether it can be replicated. The goal is to design it so that it can be transferred into an online interactive format.