Jesse Jones
Kinesiology and Health Science
Professional Practice Associate Professor
Contact Information
Office Hours: Wed 10:00 am - 3:00 pm and available by appointment (https://calendly.com/jessejjones/15min).Office Location: HPER 157
Phone: 435-797-0669
Email: jesse.jones@usu.edu
Additional Information:
Educational Background
Licensures & Certifications
Biography
I am an Associate Professor of Practice in Recreation Administration at Utah State University, coordinating Outdoor Adventure Leadership. My work integrates experiential education, backcountry leadership, and Shinrin-yoku (forest therapy), blending field-based practice with applied research on wellbeing, learning, and human–nature connection.
Teaching Interests
My teaching interests center on developing self-determined Outdoor Adventure Leaders through experiential, field-based education. In Recreation Administration, I emphasize the integration of theory, practice, and lived experience so students gain the knowledge, skills, judgment, and professional identity needed to lead people responsibly in outdoor and nature-based contexts.
My teaching blends backcountry leadership, risk management, facilitation, and Shinrin-yoku (forest therapy) with applied research on wellbeing, learning, and human–nature connection. I design learning environments where students actively practice leadership, reflect deeply on experience, and learn to guide others through challenge, uncertainty, and connection to place.
As a practitioner-educator, I believe effective teaching requires modeling. I engage students through multiple learning formats, ask only what I have practiced myself, and continually develop my own field-based competencies. My goal is to prepare graduates who are confident guides, reflective leaders, and thoughtful stewards capable of translating experience into meaningful, ethical practice.
Research Interests
My research interests focus on how guided outdoor and nature-based experiences support leadership development, wellbeing, and meaningful human–nature relationships across the life course. Drawing from Outdoor Adventure Leadership (OAL) and Shinrin-yoku (forest therapy), my work examines how intentional facilitation, challenge, reflection, and connection to place shape learning, health, and quality of life outcomes.
I am particularly interested in applied, field-based research that bridges scholarship and practice. This includes studying experiential learning systems in outdoor leadership education, the role of nature-based practices in stress reduction and resilience, and how guided experiences foster personal growth, social connection, and stewardship. My research is designed to be accessible to practitioners, students, and community partners while informing program design, curriculum development, and policy in recreation, outdoor education, and nature therapy contexts.
Situated within the interdisciplinary environment of Kinesiology and Health Science at Utah State University, my research emphasizes collaboration with students, agencies, and community partners throughout Utah and beyond. Through this work, I aim to contribute applied knowledge that supports ethical leadership, wellbeing, and sustainable relationships between people and the natural world.
Awards
Undergraduate Faculty Mentor of the Year 2022-2023, 2023
Department of Kinesiology and Health Science
Teaching Scholar Certificate, 2021
Utah State University - Academic and Instructional Services