Getting To Know Your Kinesiology Family – Faculty Spotlights

Rhonda Grafton Boyd, M.Ed.
Social Media Coordinator

Where did you grow up and what activities were you involved in?
I was born and raised in Ruston. I lived in Monroe for about 5 years and then moved back to Ruston. Growing up, as long as I had a bicycle, Barbie doll and a basketball I was set! My best friend and I would play outside most nights until it was too dark to see. I took dancing from Mrs. Martile Mathewes (tap was my favorite) for 7 years then piano from Miss Margaret Moffett for 7 years. I attended Bethel Christian School and graduated in 1982. In school, I played basketball and softball. I had a scholarship offer to play basketball at Louisiana College, but wanted to go to Louisiana Tech

My Daddy and me 1967

My Mama at her new desk and switchboard at Green Clinic 1980

What did you want to be when you grew up?
As early as I can remember I wanted to be a veterinarian. By the time I was in high school this had changed to wanting to become an accountant. I was going to be a CPA and move to Dallas!

What was your first job?
My first job was at Green Clinic working in the basement of the old Clinic building on Vienna in Medical Records. My mother worked and retired from there after 30 years. They had a summer work program for employee’s teens. I was very fortunate in that not only did I work there summers from the time I was 13 but worked there while I was in college.

Where did you attend undergrad and what was your major?
I started out in Accounting at Louisiana Tech but after a couple of years decided that was not the major for me. I switched to Marketing. I am a 1986 Louisiana Tech graduate with a B.S. in Business Administration with a Marketing concentration. This degree has and continues to serve me well!

Winter Graduation 1986 Dr. F. Jay Taylor

Where did you attend graduate school and your activities during that time?
In 1988 I received my M.Ed. in Exercise Science and a Post-Bacculareate Certificate in Gerontology from Northeast Louisiana University. As usual, there is an interesting story here. After graduation, I decide to go back to school to become a teacher so I was going to get my certification to teach business and physical education. While pursing this I was still working at Green Clinic. At that time the Clinic conducted clinical trials for pharmaceuticals. At this particular time there was a trial for older people who might contract the flu. Mary Ellen Bass, the Clinical Coordinator at the Clinic, hired me to do marketing for this clinical trial. My job was to present to as many organizations and clubs which had older members. One day I was telling Dr. Sylvia Stroops (a former professor in the Kinesiology Department) about this and she suggested that I speak to the members of the Senior Citizen Exercise Program (now the Adult Fitness Program) which at this time was in its infancy – 8 years old. Long story short, I asked Lou Ann Albritton (another former instructor in the department) if I could speak to her classes. I loved it so much that I decided that was what I wanted to do career wise – work with older adults. At the time my future husband was at Northeast Louisiana University (now ULM) and told me about the gerontology program they had there. I was really excited because the closest program was in Florida. I took classes at Tech that I needed to make up the deficiencies I had in order to enroll at NLU in the Exercise Science Masters graduate program. While I was doing that I did four practicums in the Adult Fitness Program assisting Mrs. Albritton and Dr. Gail Clark.

What brought you to Louisiana Tech?
It was not a what, but a couple of whos that brought me to Tech. Dr. Gail Clark, my friend and mentor is the main reason I am at Tech. The department was in need of an adjunct instructor to teach two satellite classes of the Adult Fitness Program. These classes met on Tuesday and Thursday and were at the Arcadia Senior Center and the Ringgold Senior Center. In addition to this, Dr. Tommy Grafton, hired me a Health Educator for Project Northland, an underage alcohol prevention program for 6^th, 7^th, and 8^th graders. I was the Health Educator in Union Parish and Lincoln Parish. Little did I know that I would eventually teach Health classes at Tech. Dr. Grafton gave me some great advice when I began teaching that I have never forgotten: “When it comes to health (alcohol, drug and sex education), you will not be able to save everyone, but if you save one, if what you share and teach causes one person to live better and make healthy decisions, then you have been a success.” He was a source of encouragement and inspiration to me for many years. After a couple of years I became fulltime thanks to Dr. Joann Dauzat and took over the Adult Fitness Program Coordinator when Dr. Clark retired. Never in my wildest dreams would I have ever thought I would be teaching at Louisiana Tech University! What an amazing adventure it has and continues to be! I cannot imagine doing anything else!

Dr. Gail Clark

Dr. Tommy Grafton

One of my first Adult Fitness Classes (2002)– notice the student in the red t-shirt – that is Mrs. Deal who was my TA my first year at Tech. My parents were also members of my class.

My 7 AM chair exercise class (2012)

What classes do you teach at Louisiana Tech? I currently teach KINE 290 Personal and Community Health or as it is known on campus: Sex, Drugs and Rock & Roll, KINE 406 Health Aspects of Aging, and KINE 280 Dance Appreciation. I have also taught for years in the Adult Fitness Program at the pool, chair classes and the After 5 class. In addition, I have taught KINE 292 Fitness and Wellness, Running, Beginning Golf and have taught for many years FYE (First Year Experience) for incoming freshmen.

What are your research interests?
Balance and Fall Prevention

What organizations are you affiliated with? Louisiana Association for Health, Physical Education, Recreation and Dance

Tell us about your family.
I am Ruston born and bred. My Daddy (Pat Grafton) owned his own business, Grafton’s TV Repair Service and my Mama (Lurline) was the PBX operator at Green Clinic. We took a vacation every summer either to visit family in Illinois, go fishing, go to see the Kansas City Royals play baseball, visit Branson, or go to Panama City Beach. We never missed a Lady Techster BB home game from 1978-1982. My Daddy passed away in 2010 and my Mama in 2014. My son Patrick is a 2013 graduate of Louisiana Tech with a double major in Journalism and English. He was the editor of the Tech Talk his senior year. After Tech, he moved to Chicago to attend Second City Comedy School. While there he opened for Lena Dunham on her book tour. In 2016 he applied and was accepted to graduate film school at UCLA in Los Angeles. I was fortunate to have him home for several weeks the summer of 2019 with a film crew and cast of 28 to film his graduate film thesis. It was incredible to see the intricate workings of an actual film shoot. He graduated with his MFA during the height of the pandemic in 2020 while the film industry was totally shut down. This past spring he was hired by Nickelodeon as a production coordinator. He and his roommate Sining (my bonus son) live in Los Angeles.

My parent’s 60th wedding anniversary

Patrick and friends home for film shoot. (2019)

Patrick and Sining Christmas 2019

Even though I was an only child, I have lots of extended family, many of whom are Tech graduates and huge supporters of Tech athletics. One of my Daddy’s older brothers, Ben Grafton taught Agronomy at Tech.

I have two fur babies, Felix an 8 year old Chihuahua and Oreo a 5 year old Jack Russell/Wire Hair Terrier.

And then there are friends that become family. Besides my work family, I am very blessed to have a bonus mom, Kathie Farmer who I call Honey. She has one of the biggest hearts I’ve ever known. Many of our alumni and current students know Honey and love to visit with her. Many times we would meet at Starbucks or my office to have coffee. She has had many of them to her home over the years. For so many it is like having a grandmother away from home. We love to ride bikes, travel and visit with friends. Needless to say we have binge watched ALOT of TV series these 18 months. Some of our favorites have been Everwood, Royal Pains, Call the Midwife, White Collar, Monk, Good Witch, Yellowstone, and Unforgettable just to name a few.

Honey

What do you like to do in your spare time to unwind?
I love to cook! I love to grill! I don’t necessarily like to bake! I love trying new recipes and feeding people. It is not uncommon for me to try a new recipe and serve it to several guests. I also love to travel, ride my bike (old school with foot brakes), walk my doggies. I love to visit with friends! Fortunately, I am blessed to work with some of my best friends – we enjoy having coffee and visiting outside of work. This was so important during COVID to still be able to visit so we came up with Driveway Coffee – friends and family members would bring their own coffee or tea and we would socially distance on the driveway with fans going and umbrellas up or with the heater and coats on.

What is your favorite quote?
“Life is a measurement of the problems we seek to solve and the people we help along the way”

Colossians 3:23 – “Work willingly at whatever you do, as though you were working for the Lord rather than men.”

Anything else you would like for us to know.
For 4 years I sang on the Temple Baptist Church Singing Christmas Tree.