Welcome to the Texas ACSM website!
I hope this message finds everyone well and enjoying the spring weather! The enthusiasm expressed during our time in Waco at the 2022 Texas Chapter of the American College of Sports Medicine (TACSM) Annual Meeting was palpable. A special thanks to our outgoing President Dr. Darryn Willoughby on the work he put into the event throughout 2021 and early 2022. Thanks to everyone’s hard work and efforts, the meeting went virtually seamless and fun was had by all. During my 25 years of involvement with regional chapters (Central States, Southeastern, and TACSM), the support and opportunities, both financially and professionally, that are provided for students by TACSM is unparalleled. Because of such a high level of commitment to students, I am excited to share with you some of the highlights of the 2022 meeting in Waco.
- We had 158 abstract/poster presentations in our first-year post-pandemic!
- TACSM awarded 14 Student Research/Development Awards (UG-2, MS-4, and PhD-8) totaling $20,000 to support student research.
- Sten Stray-Gundersen of UT-Austin was our President’s Cup recipient for 2022 and will represent TACSM at National ACSM for 2022.
- Jamie Ambriz from TAMU-Kingsville received the Undergraduate Scholar Award
- 18 students were recognized as the TACSM “Major of the Year” for their respective universities.
This year’s National ACSM Meeting will be held in San Diego. Our TACSM Student Bowl representatives this year will be Timothy Averill, Levi Bell, and Corb Cannefax from UT-Tyler. Many congratulations to UT-Tyler, as this is the first time TACSM will be represented in the Student Bowl by that university. Our TACSM Social for National ACSM 2022 will be held at Joe’s Crab Shack on Thursday, June 2nd from 5-7pm. Joe’s is located at 525 E. Harbor Drive, San Diego, CA 92101, which is on the water side of the San Diego Convention Center. We are excited that we will be able to resume the TACSM Social this year, as it is always a highlight to this meeting for our members, as well for members of other chapters. Our tradition of finger foods and limited drink tickets will continue in the coming year as well.
As we move forward in the coming year, rest assured that the TACSM Executive Board, under the direction of current Executive Director, Lem Taylor, is working diligently on how to best serve the members of TACSM and are actively working on continued improvements to the overall meeting experience. The 2023 TACSM Annual Meeting will be organized by the TACSM Executive Board and myself, as TACSM President, and is scheduled to be held again at the Waco Convention Center in Waco, TX on February 23-24, 2023. However, please check both the TACSM website (www.tacsm.org) and your email for chapter and Annual Meeting updates as the board of directors is gathering information about the prospects of holding our meeting later in the spring.
I look forward to the opportunity to serve as the President of TACSM. Thanks to everyone in advance for all the time and efforts that will be rendered to this cause.
Eric J. Jones, PhD
TACSM-President
Stephen F. Austin State University