Shenandoah University Celebrates The 10-Year Anniversary Of Exercise Is Medicine On Campus

By Natalie Gales ’25

This fall marks the 10th year that Shenandoah University is celebrating Exercise is Medicine on Campus (EIM-OC). EIM-OC Month takes place worldwide every October, and it seeks to educate college students and community members about the importance of physical activity, connect them with exercise science professionals and make working out accessible and fun.

While EIM-OC now has a large presence on Shenandoah’s campus, it hasn’t always been that way. In 2015, Department Chair and Assistant Professor of Exercise Science Barry Parker, Ph.D., registered SU as an EIM-OC university. In its first couple of years, the program was primarily faculty-driven. Though a couple of students volunteered, the Exercise Science Department wanted to encourage more to join the initiative.

In response, Assistant Provost for Academic Innovation and Professor of Exercise Science Jessica Peacock, Ph.D., started a new class in 2020, EXSC-412: Exercise is Medicine. The class was created in collaboration with an exercise science alum who wanted to continue inspiring the program’s current undergraduates. In EXSC-412, students plan campus activities for October and shadow staff in the medical integration fitness program at Valley Health Wellness & Fitness Center in November and December. By building volunteer opportunities into a credited class, Dr. Peacock enabled students to take the lead in expanding EIM-OC and helped them build stronger connections with the Winchester community.

As for other program highlights, 2018 marked SU’s first participation in EIM-OC’s Mascot Challenge. The annual competition encourages college students to create original videos of their school’s mascot promoting physical activity. The EXSC-412 students write, direct and film Shenandoah’s contest entry, and the university has seen great success over the years. In the first year of participation, SU’s video won Fan Favorite, and in 2019 won first place in the overall judged competition. Since then, the university has placed in the top three an additional three times.

In 2021, Shenandoah University was named a Gold Campus in the EIM-OC Recognition Program, marking another milestone in the EIM-OC journey. While Bronze and Silver Campuses promote physical activity, Gold Campuses go beyond. They have referral systems in place for campus members seeking support for improving their physical activity habits. At SU, staff at the Wilkins Wellness Center and Counseling Center are provided the EIM Physical Activity Vital Sign to assess the physical activity habits of campus members. From there, staff can refer them to local professionals in the fitness field. While there are more than 200 chapters of EIM-OC internationally, approximately 80 can boast that they’ve reached Gold level.

Peacock takes great pride in how far the program has come and looks forward to its continued evolution. “I hope that EIM-OC has expanded awareness across campus that regular exercise is important for health, and that exercise can be done in all kinds of ways outside of just attendance at a gym,” she said. “We would not be able to make EIM-OC Month successful without collaboration and partnership across campus; I am grateful to everyone who has shown support for the program, and that is entirely too many people to list at once!”To get more involved with EIM-OC this year, students, faculty and staff are encouraged to participate in the bingo challenge. Enjoy a walk, join SOAR for a hike, try a new sport and more. Complete five boxes in a row vertically, horizontally or diagonally, upload your completed card to the EIM-OC Bingo Challenge Submission Form and be entered for a chance to win prizes. To learn more, visit SU’s EIM-OC Google site.