Education
Doctor of Philosophy in Leisure Behavior (Indiana University)
Master of Science in Youth and Family Recreation (Brigham Young University)
Bachelor of Arts in History, Secondary Education Emphasis
Scholarly Contributions
I have more than 60 publications spanning a variety of publication outlets in both RT and non-RT journals and books, and more than 80 presentations at RT and non-RT conferences. This demonstrates the broad applicability and multidisciplinary nature of my work.
Featured Publications
Townsend, J., Hill, B., & Crowe, B. (2025). Exploring adaptive intercollegiate athletics program structures: An application of open systems theory. Journal of Intercollegiate Sport, 18(1), 1-25. doi: 10.17161/jis.v18i1.21660.
Townsend, J., & Whaley, D. (2024). Adaptive sports for military populations. In R. Hardin & J. Pate (Eds.) Introduction to Parasport and Recreation. Champaign, IL: Human Kinetics.
Townsend, J., Hawkins, B., Bennett, J., Hoffman, J., Martin, T., Sotherden, E., & Bridges, W. (2018). Preliminary long-term health outcomes associated with recreation-based health & wellness programs for injured service members. Cogent Psychology, 5(1), 1-17. doi: 10.1080/23311908.2018.1444330
Leadership & Professional Service
I was a co-chair for the ATRA Research Institute for 6 years.
Professional Awards & Recognition
Clemson Faculty Senate Centennial Professorship (nominee in 2025), award for overall excellence in teaching, research, and service. Clemson Graduate School Distinguished Doctoral Mentoring Award (nominee in 2025), award for my considerable work with graduate students, especially RT students. Clemson CBSHS Outstanding Journal Publication Award (2024). Selected for and completed the Clemson University President's Leadership Institute (2023) for leadership development opportunity. Clemson University MLK Jr Faculty Award for Excellence in Service (awarded in 2022), for my work in developing community adaptive sports in South Carolina. Clemson CBSHS Award for Innovative Excellence in Teaching (awarded in 2020), for my contributions to online PhD program excellence.