Currently Elected Officers
The governing body for NCPEID is comprised of a 5-member Executive Committee and a 10-member Board of Directors. Included within this governing body are the president, immediate past president or president-elect, vice president, treasurer, secretary, four members at-large, historian, APENS chair, awards chair, research consortium chair, and two student representatives.
Executive Committee
Iva Obrusnikova, PhD, CAPE
NCPEID President (2024-2026)
Professor
University of Delaware
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Chih-Chia (JJ) Chen, PhD, CAPE, ACSM-EP CIFT
NCPEID Vice President (2025-2027)
Assistant Professor
University of Iowa
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Andrea Taliaferro, PhD
NCPEID President Elect (2025-2026)
University of South Carolina
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Cora J. Firkin, PhD
NCPEID Secretary (2025-2028)
Assistant Professor
Lincoln University of Pennsylvania
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Adam Pennell, PhD, CAPE
Treasurer (2022-2026)
Associate Professor
Pepperdine University
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Board of Directors
Leah Ketcheson, PhD, CAPE
NCPEID APENS Committee Chair (2024-2028)
Associate Professor
Wayne State University
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Melissa Bittner, PhD, CAPE
NCPEID Policy & Advocacy Committee Chair (2025-2027)
Associate Professor
California State University, Long Beach
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Ali Brian, PhD, CAEPE
NCPEID Research Committee Chair (2025-2027)
Associate Dean for Research and Professor
University of South Carolina
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Samantha Ross-Cypcar, PhD
NCPEID Awards Committee Chair (2023-2026)
Assistant Professor
University of Utah
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Tara McCarthy, MS, CAPE
NCPEID Member at Large (2024-2026)
Adapted PE Team Leader, Teacher, Trainer, and Presenter
Cooperative Association for Special Education Districts
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Lindsay Ball, PhD
NCPEID Member at Large (2024-2026)
Assistant Professor
SUNY Cortland
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Danielle Musser, MS, CAPE
NCPEID Member at Large (2025-2027)
Adaptive and Inclusion Programming Leader
Montrose Recreation
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Allison Tsuchida, PhD
Member at Large (2025-2027)
Assistant Professor
University of Hawai'i at Mānoa
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Lorena Gonzalez Espitia, MA
NCPEID Student Representative (2025-2027)
Doctoral Student
University of Georgia
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Sylvester L. Maduna
NCPEID Student Representative (2025-2027)
Doctoral Student
University of South Carolina
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Lauren Bean, PhD
NCPEID Communications Manager (2024-2026)
Assistant Professor
SUNY Brockport
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Adam Forbes, PhD, CAPE
NCPEID Website Manager (2025-2028)
Assistant Professor
Norfolk State University
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Numerous prominent leaders in the academic disciplines of Adapted Physical Education/Activity and Therapeutic Recreation have served as president of the Consortium. Many of these past presidents are authors of the scholarly textbooks and significant research/demonstration projects that serve as the foundations for effective physical activity and recreation programming for individuals with disabilities.
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