Tucker Center Newsletter - 2010 Spring
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Staff Updates: Alyssa Norris
Alyssa Norris joined the Tucker Center in the fall
of 2009 as a Research Assistant under the guidance of her academic
adviser and Tucker Center Associate Director, Nicole LaVoi. Norris
earned a B.A. in Psychology from Princeton University in 2007,
graduating Magna Cum Laude. She comes to the Tucker Center with an
extensive research background, interest in gender issues, and a deep
love of sports. Her senior thesis research—Attribution of Blame to Rape
Victims and Perpetrators: Effects of Gender, Sexual Orientation, and
Sexism—earned Norris the Scientific Research Society Book Award from
Sigma Xi. This professional organization honors excellence in scientific
investigation and membership is by invitation only.
Following graduation, Norris worked as a Research Coordinator for the New York State Psychiatric Institute at Columbia University Medical Center, where she managed a research project on ways to increase the efficacy of cognitive-behavioral treatments for substance abusers. Due to the quality—as well as the breadth and depth—of her work, she was invited by Susan Fiske, an internationally known scholar in the Psychology Department at Princeton, to co-author a chapter titled “Sexism and Heterosexism” which will appear in the forthcoming Cambria Press volume, Aspects of Prejudice: A Handbook.
While at Princeton, Norris played intramural basketball and also served as the president of Club Basketball. In 2002, she completed the Los Angeles Triathlon for Team In Training to raise money for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. She is best described as a “passionate fitness enthusiast,” having just earned her National Academy of Sports Medicine Certified Personal Trainer Licensure. At the U of M, she competes in recreational basketball and broomball leagues, and is frequently found completing CrossFit workouts with her fellow graduate students. Her research interests are varied—positive youth development through sports, gendered experiences of collegiate female assistant coaches, and the gendered space usage of recreational fitness centers. Most recently, Norris has taken on a leadership role for a study the Tucker Center is conducting: Media Portrayals of Men’s and Women’s Collegiate Basketball Coaches featured on ESPN.com. It is an understatement to say the Alyssa Norris is a great addition to The Tucker Team!