About Me

Clifton Watts

Clifton Watts

Clifton Watts

  • Member since Feb 19, 2007
  • East Carolina University
  • United States
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Clifton E. Watts Jr. (Ph.D., 2004, The Pennsylvania State University) is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Recreation and Leisure Studies at East Carolina University in Greenville, North Carolina.    Dr. Watts’ research and scholarly interests are directed to three specific areas of inquiry: (1) evaluating how and to what extent communities enact collaborative, interdisciplinary approaches to address the needs of youth; (2) understanding what contexts and transactions are linked to positive youth development; and (3) examining how parks and open spaces promote healthy behavior and environmental awareness in youth.

Prior to his arrival at East Carolina University, Dr. Watts worked at Texas A&M where he served on faculty in the Recreation Park and Tourism Sciences Department.  While at A&M, he was an associate faculty member of the university’s Children, Youth and Family Research Initiative, where he served from 2004 through 2008.  He has an extensive background as an evaluator, and started his post-graduate career as a Project Director and Research Associate for Education Development Center, Inc., which is located in Newton, Massachusetts.  In this capacity, he assisted with the design and execution of studies for a range of prevention and intervention programs aimed at high-risk youth.  These studies involved a wide variety of community based efforts emanating from municipal recreation and park departments, schools, hospitals, criminal justice, and other grassroots agencies.

Dr. Watts has taught courses in Leisure and Human Behavior, Leadership and Group Dynamics, Program Planning and Evaluation, Research and Evaluation Methods, and Social Policy and Evaluation of Initiatives for Youth.  He has several papers, technical reports and presentations to his credit, and has been highly involved with local, state and national organizations in the area of youth development.  He is a member of the National Recreation and Park Association, and also serves as an Associate Editor for the academic journal, Leisure Sciences.  He is an active reviewer for the Journal of Leisure Research and the Journal of Park and Recreation Administration.

Interests

Recently added to this blog

  • Kids and Sport
  • Nature
  • Adolescence as a failed cultural model
  • Picture 30
  • YD

Testing for the Sports Gene?

Nature and Youth Involvement

Adolescence: What to do?

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