Rachel Swinford, Ph.D., is a clinical associate professor in the Department of Kinesiology and a faculty fellow in the IUPUI Institute for Engaged Learning for both first-year experience and ePortfolio. Swinford serves as a faculty mentor for the American Association of Colleges and Universities (AAC&U) Institute on ePortfolios, is a member of the Dance Council for Indiana SHAPE, a board member of Down Syndrome Indiana, and serves on the review board for the International Journal of ePortfolio. She is also founder and president of Inspire Team Building and Leadership, which is an organization that helps teams implement strategies to enhance team performance and success.
Swinford has been the recipient of several teaching awards including the IU Trustees Teaching Award, SHHS Sustained Excellence in Teaching Award, and the Indiana SHAPE Dance Educator of the Year Award. Swinford graduated from Indiana University with a B.S. in 2005 and received her M.S. in 2007. She earned her doctorate in health and rehabilitation sciences from Indiana University in 2012.
Swinford focuses on high-impact learning experiences for her students such as service learning, experiential learning, and ePortfolio. She is involved with a service-learning program called Physically Active Residential Communities and Schools (PARCS), co-directs the university's INSHAPE personal training program, and co-directs an adapted dance program for individuals with Down syndrome called Live Laugh Dance.
