JSCR Editorial Excellence Award

Dr. Ryan McGrath is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Health, Nutrition, and Exercise Sciences at North Dakota State University. He also holds faculty appointments at the Fargo VA Healthcare System, the University of North Dakota, and the University of South Australia. Dr. McGrath completed a postdoctoral fellowship at the University of Michigan and earned a PhD from the University of Idaho, MS from the University of North Dakota, and BA from the University of Jamestown. Much of Dr. McGrath’s research is devoted to successful aging for health and human performance.

Dr. Tim Suchomel is an Associate Professor of Exercise Science and the Program Director for the Sport Physiology and Performance Coaching graduate program at Carroll University. In addition to his teaching, Tim is the Director of the Carroll University Sport Performance Institute and works as a human performance coach with several teams. Tim has served the National Strength and Conditioning Association (NSCA) in a variety of roles, including working as the Wisconsin State Director from 2017-2023, where he was named the 2019 NSCA State/Provincial Director of the Year. He currently serves as a Research Committee member, Chair of the Sport Science and Performance Technology Special Interest Group, and a Senior Associate Editor and Associate Editor for the Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research and Strength and Conditioning Journal, respectively. He has published one book, ten book chapters, and over 100 peer-reviewed journal articles on topics that include weightlifting movements and their derivatives, strength and power development, and athlete monitoring. In 2022, he was named the Terry J. Housh Outstanding Young Investigator of the Year. Tim is a Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist with Distinction (CSCS,*D) and Registered Strength and Conditioning Coach (RSCC) through the NSCA.

Michael R. Deschenes earned his PhD from the Department of Physiology and Neurobiology at the University of Connecticut in 1992. He then proceeded to do his postdoctoral work in the Department of Physiology at the State University of New York (SUNY) Upstate Medical University in Syracuse. Upon completion of his work there, Dr. Deschenes assumed his current faculty position in the Department of Kinesiology & Health Sciences at the College of William & Mary where he currently serves as Professor and Chair. He is also a member of the faculty in the William & Mary Program in Neuroscience. Dr. Deschenes’ research focuses on the neuromuscular system and its morphological and functional adaptations to increased (exercise), and decreased (muscle unloading) activity, as well as the effects of aging on that system. He is a Fellow of the American College of Sports Medicine, and serves as an associate editor for Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise, Frontiers in Physiology, as well as serving as a senior associate editor of the Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research.

Margaret T. Jones is a Professor of Sport, Recreation and Tourism Management, and an affiliate of the Center for Sports Performance at George Mason University. She is the Director of the Patriot Performance Laboratory in the Frank Pettrone Center for Sports Performance at George Mason University. She holds degrees from the University of Tennessee (BA), the University of Houston (MEd), and the University of Georgia (PhD), and completed a NIH Postdoctoral Fellow at Cornell University. Past experience includes 15 years at Springfield College as Director of the Strength and Conditioning Master’s degree program and Director of Strength and Conditioning for Intercollegiate Athletics, where she supervised program design and implementation for 500 athletes from 24 sports. An active member of the NSCA since 1995, Dr. Jones received the NSCA Educator of the Year Award in 2008, and Fellow of the NSCA (FNSCA) in 2012. In 2016, she was the recipient of the NSCA’s Senior Investigator Grant in support of her work with cluster resistive exercise in resistance trained women athletes. Currently, she serves as a Senior Associate Editor for the Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research and an Associate Editor-in-Chief for the Strength and Conditioning Journal. Dr. Jones’ research uses resistance exercise to address questions related to athlete health and performance. She has authored many publications in peer-reviewed academic journals and has presented consistently at regional, national, and international conferences. She holds NSCA CSCS,*D and USA Weightlifting certifications.