BALTIMORE -- Coppin State's recently appointed Faculty Athletic Representative, Dr. Irving Smith, has wasted little time in making an impact on campus, in the lives of student-athletes, and the world. Smith's smiling face bounces up and down the Coppin State athletics office corridor in the Physical Education Complex consistently and he is a routine fixture at athletic events.

Dr. Smith traveled to Athens, Greece and was there from May 3-8 to present to other health professionals from around the world his research findings from his summer 2014 global health disparities research trip to Honduras, Central America. He was also selected by the conference to serve as the chairperson of the session on "Psychological and Physical Activity Issues in Health" where he coordinated the presentations of other health professionals.

It was Smith's first time visiting Greece but his presentation so resonated with conference officials and attendees that he has been invited back next year. These conferences are designed to bring together the brightest and best health scientists and health professionals from around the world to present their unique research findings to other professionals for the purpose of contributing to and expanding the body of knowledge. Sixty-two nations were represented at this year's conference.

Smith made the most of his leisure time in Athens by enjoying the sights and experiencing the culture. "I witnessed the finish of the Athens Half Marathon, the precursor to the Marathon that dates back for centuries. I visited the Panathenaic Stadium, site of the first modern Olympic Games in 1896. I cruised to the Greek Islands including Poros, Aegina, and Hydra. I traveled to Delphi, for many centuries the religious and spiritual center of Greek civilization, and I walked up the Acropolis to the Parthenon in the footsteps of the Apostle Paul."  

This was not Smith's first international speaking engagement. He was an invited speaker at the International Conference on Aging and Physical Activity. He also served on a panel of presenters at the White House Conference on Aging, speaking on aging and physical activity and he was a national surrogate speaker for former U.S. President Clinton's healthcare reform public policy initiative.

Smith retired in the Fall of 2013 after 45 years of public service to become Chair of the Department of Health and Health Education at Coppin State University. He began at Coppin in 2008, on a part-time basis, teaching in the Sport Management Program. The last 25 years of his public service was with the Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission in Prince George's County where he taught Sports Science and Coaching Effective courses. He taught, trained, and certified more than 65,000 coaches of all sports over a 20-year span. Dr. Smith is also a published academic author and speaker on sports related and health related topics including the health and wellness benefits of lifetime sports participation.