Sharon Plowman, PhD, is the recipient of the 2006 Honor Award. Dr. Plowman is Professor Emeritus in the Department of Kinesiology and Physical Education at Northern Illinois University. She has served as chair of the AAHPERD Exercise Physiology Academy and the AAHPERD Physical Fitness Council. Her honors include a University Teaching Excellence Award, the AAHPERD Mabel Lee Award, the Illinois Governor’s Health and Fitness Award, and AAHPERD’s Physical Fitness Council Honor Award. She has published more than 60 peer-reviewed research articles and three books on topics including the effects of physical activity on children, females, and the elderly, and the development and validation of physical fitness tests for firefighters, children, adolescents, and college-aged individuals. In fulfilling the spirit of the Honor Award, Dr. Plowman has served as a catalyst to promote, encourage, and motivate Americans of all ages and abilities to be physically active.

A call for nominations for the 2007 Honor Award winner will be posted in September.

One component of the science partnership with the American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM) is the role ACSM members will play as coordinators of the President’s Challenge Demonstration Center program. These 25 volunteer coordinators will help identify and verify quality physical education/physical activity programs in their states and report their findings to the President’s Challenge program office. A big thanks to ACSM and its members who have agreed to serve in this capacity!