Are you preparing for a career in healthcare, public health, special education, or fitness and wellness? If you answered “yes,” the Promoting Activity for Diverse Abilities (PADA) Certificate is the perfect blend of coursework and experiential learning. Students who have completed the PADA Certificate go on to graduate programs and careers in occupational or physical therapy, speech-language pathology, medicine, nursing, dentistry, counseling, special education, and many other exciting and challenging fields.
The PADA certificate will prepare you with the knowledge and skills to improve the health and well-being of people with disabilities through movement, including physical activity and rehabilitation therapies.
Plus, you’ll have an opportunity to gain hands-on experience while developing your pre-professional skills and competencies in the Adapted Fitness Program — one of UW’s most sought-after volunteer experiences. Adapted Fitness offers inclusive physical activities to adults and children living with a variety of disabilities. PADA students work in teams to problem solve in a care setting, where they develop exercise regimens for their clients, foster adherence to clinician-prescribed therapies, and offer psychosocial support and motivation. Students also learn pre-clinical skills, such as taking basic vitals, using gait belts, performing transfers, assessing measures of fitness, conducting health histories, and much more.
Study Abroad Opportunity
The Kinesiology Department also offers a short-term, faculty-led summer study abroad course, Inclusive Physical Activity, Sport & Rehabilitation in Ireland. Explore Ireland’s progressive health reforms and gain hands-on experience in allied health, disability services, fitness, health education, and public health. Credit is given for KINES 260, an elective for the PADA certificate.
How to Get in
The SoE’s Undergraduate Academic Advising Services will administer the process that students will use to declare enrollment in the certificate. Students declaring in the Certificate must have a minimum grade point average of 2.50 to be eligible for the certificate to align with the School of Education's requirement for good academic standing. Students intending to complete the Promoting Activity for Diverse Abilities Certificate should visit the School of Education's Certificate Programs page to complete the declaration form.
Students declared in the Physical Education BS may not declare the Certificate in Promoting Activity for Diverse Abilities.
Requirements
Students must complete a minimum of 16 total credits. The 10-11 credits of core courses will provide the foundation content and instruction needed to be successful in subsequent certificate courses and will provide an upper-level course focusing on application and mastering knowledge. Students will also complete 5-6 credits of breadth elective courses that span the departments of Kinesiology, Rehabilitation Psychology and Special Education, Dance, and Communication Sciences and Disorders. Breadth courses give students from a wide array of backgrounds and majors to select courses that will be applicable to a variety of diverse career interests or the students will also have the ability to choose courses in a more narrowed and detailed focus. Allowing for a set of focused elective choices or range of elective topic areas will be a benefit and a draw to students pursuing a variety of career paths.
Certificate students must earn a minimum grade point average of 2.5 on required certificate coursework. At least 8 credits must be taken in residence.
Core Courses
Complete 10-11 credits from the following:
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| KINES 225 | Introduction to Physical Activity Programming for Diverse Abilities | 2 |
| KINES 227 | Introduction to Clinical Anatomy of Human Movement | 2-3 |
| or ANAT&PHY 337 | Human Anatomy | |
| KINES 516 | Physical Activity for Diverse Abilities | 3 |
| RP & SE 300 | Individuals with Disabilities | 3 |
Breadth Elective Courses
Complete 5-6 credits from the following:
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| CS&D 110 | Introduction to Communicative Disorders | 3 |
| CS&D 210 | Neural Basis of Communication | 3 |
| CS&D 424 | Introduction to Sign Language | 2 |
| DANCE 231 | Introduction to Dance/Movement Therapy | 3 |
| DANCE 232 | Introduction to Dynamics of Dance Therapy | 3 |
| DANCE 331 | Dynamics of Dance Therapy | 3 |
| KINES 100 | Exercise, Nutrition, and Health | 2 |
| KINES 150 | Foundations of Health Behavior and Health Equity | 3 |
| KINES 260 | Inclusive Physical Activity, Sport & Rehabilitation in Ireland | 3 |
| KINES 360 | Lifespan Motor Development | 3 |
| KINES 540 | Diversity in Health and Physical Activity Settings | 3 |
| RP & SE 330 | Behavior Analysis: Applications to Persons with Disabilities | 3 |
| RP & SE 466 | Diversity in Special Education | 3 |
Certificate Completion Requirements
This undergraduate certificate must be completed concurrently with the student’s undergraduate degree. Students cannot delay degree completion to complete the certificate.
Learning Outcomes
- Demonstrate the ability to increase healthy behaviors and safe activities for persons with diverse abilities.
- Obtain the skills and knowledge to encourage, empower, and prescribe activity for people who exhibit a wide array of disabling conditions.
- Identify, create and expand opportunities where larger organizations can create more accessible physical activity programs for those who exhibit diverse abilities.
- Develop practical skills and knowledge to modify and or adapt activities to minimize the effects of disabling conditions and maximize healthy movement opportunities.