“Tell me and I will forget, teach me and I may remember, involve me and I will learn.” – Jennifer Romack, frequently heard quoting Benjamin Franklin
It is with heavy hearts that we in the College of Health and Human Development inform the campus community of the loss of one of our CSUN family members, Jennifer Romack, PhD, Professor of Kinesiology, who passed away on April 24, 2016.
Jennifer’s range of study encompassed human movement throughout the lifespan. Most recently however, she was engaged in two research programs, both pertaining to the movement skills of young children. She studied contributing factors related to children’s risk for becoming overweight or obese and also focused on the effect that age and movement experiences have on children’s neuromuscular control strategies.
Whether through teaching or research, Jennifer was always in support of student success. She advocated for students to engage in their own learning and was instrumental in institutionalizing service-learning at CSUN. She also played an integral role in establishing CSUN as a national leader in service-learning research and practice.
Through her research, she showed that students enrolled in service-learning labs scored higher on lecture exams than those who received traditional lab experiences. She showed that service-learning led to significant positive changes in the ways students perceive and understand course material as well their community awareness, self-awareness, and commitment to civic responsibility.
Her high standards for quality pedagogy shaped the academic experience for our students. She consistently worked to amplify service learning experiences, always keeping assessment at the forefront of her methodology. In 2000, she began supervising undergraduate kinesiology majors in service-learning projects designed to meet community-identified physical activity needs. Over the next sixteen years, she would supervise over 1,900 students in service learning activities.
She has served as CSUN’s Director of Community Service-Learning and received the 2006 Faculty Award for Visionary Community Service-Learning. In 2014, she received the university’s outstanding Faculty Award. Jennifer continually sought and discovered new ways to improve our communities. She was active in the campus Tiered Mentoring Program, where students participate in researching and promoting children’s physical activity. She was recognized for her dynamic teaching excellence, wide ranging service across campus and contributions in her field of study.
Through her work in faculty development for the college, she also helped support the inclusion/recognition of scholarship of engagement in retention, tenure and promotions policies within institutions of higher education across the nation.
Students and faculty have described Jennifer as an amazing teacher and scholar who presented her opinions in an authentic and outgoing manner. Whether speaking to faculty or students, she conveyed knowledge of structure and technique with authority, sensitivity to individual concerns, and with a style of communication that easily combines substance with humor.Her loyalty to students and her teaching never wavered.
Though she was ill, in her final weeks she continued showed courage and determination while continuing to work and live a good life with her family. Friends and colleagues have spoken of an honesty of character which led her in research, teaching and making arrangements to see to it that each student got what they needed from each course. Our hearts collectively ache for the loss of our amazing friend and colleague.
Jennifer received a BA in physical education from Northern Kentucky University, Highland Heights, KY. She earned a MS degree in kinesiology from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, and a PhD in human performance from Indiana University, Bloomington.
In lieu of flowers, the family has asked that donations be made in Jennifer’s name to the Arbor Day Foundation.
Sp2016
Tami Abourezk, Jean O'Sullivan