Binghamton University teacher inspires students to live healthy

For some, working in academia is a clear career goal. For Sarah Thompson, however, the path to becoming a University instructor wasn’t so straightforward.

“I didn’t go to school to be an educator,” Thompson said. “I didn’t think that I would necessarily be in academia at all.”

Thompson, a lecturer in the Health and Wellness Studies (HWS) Department, began her career in the fitness industry as an exercise physiologist intern in a cardiac-rehabilitation center. After about three months, the Atwood, Kan., native realized the rehabilitation world wasn’t for her. Instead, she decided she could make the biggest impact working in preventive healthcare.

To make the switch, Thompson came to Binghamton University in 1995 to work in the Campus Recreation Department’s Recreation Center, specifically in wellness services and FitSpace (the University’s on-campus fitness center).

As part of her position, Thompson was required to teach a class — and her teaching career took off from there. Administrators recognized her teaching potential and offered her the opportunity to change from the student affairs side of the University to the academic side.

Within HWS, which is part of the Decker School of Nursing, Thompson teaches classes centering around healthy living. For example, in spring 2018 she taught HWS 212: Wellness Through Aerobic Exercise, HWS 332: Nutrition and HWS 336: The Science and Application of Exercise. She said her teaching style revolves around the principle that in the ever-changing environment of learning, she is constantly learning, too.

“I find teaching to be very much a two-way street,” Thompson said. “I have as much to learn from my students as they have to learn from me.”

Though Thompson said she is known for having a high bar when it comes to grading tests and quizzes, she is well-liked by professors and students alike. In fact, Thompson received the Chancellor’s Award for Excellence in Teaching for the 2016-17 academic year. She was nominated by a colleague and students wrote on her behalf, so she takes great pride in being an award recipient. Thompson says her love for her profession always comes back to her passion for helping students.

“It’s self-fulfilling, working with [students]. They are so fantastically dynamic and intelligent and hardworking,” Thompson said. “They’re going to change the world, and I get to be a part of that through them.”

In addition to teaching, Thompson chairs the Eating Awareness Committee (EAC), a cross-campus, interdepartmental group that supports students’ mental and physical well-being through education, events and resources. The EAC focuses on issues of eating disorders and body image, which are areas of particular interest for Thompson. She is especially proud of EAC’s new program, The Body Project, a two-session workshop where students discuss and process the “appearance ideal” society places on everyone and how to combat it.

“I’m very passionate about The Body Project because I feel most people at some point in their life have struggled with eating disorders or body-image disorders,” Thompson said. “I feel it’s very applicable to what our students are going through and what they need support with. It’s so limiting to their potential.”

The EAC is composed of members from several University departments, such as Nutrition Services, Health and Wellness Studies, Residential Life and the University Counseling Center. Jennifer Wegmann, a member of the EAC and lecturer in HWS, said Thompson’s work has already had a positive impact on students.

“Sarah has dedicated her career and life to teaching, and her passion is infectious,” Wegmann said. “She is adored for her altruistic ways and respected for her intellect. Binghamton University is a better place because of Sarah Thompson!”

For Thompson, it’s crucial to teach students healthy methods of living that will stick with them for the rest of their lives because she believes there is a correlation between being health conscious and being effective inside and outside the classroom.

“I’m a firm believer in the fact that if we practice self-care ... then we will be the most effective and healthiest person we can be,” Thompson said. “I hope that in some way, I can give them the knowledge and hopefully empower them to know how to make changes to be the best version of themselves.”