Mikel Schmidt Associate Professor
I was born in San Mateo, California, and I grew
up here in the beautiful Bay Area. I have seen a lot of changes
in the Bay Area from my childhood until now.
I attended San Carlos High School where I studied football and baseball, and of course the academics like ceramics, cooking, and wood shop. Well, I did also study the required Math and English types of classes, but with resistance.
I attended the College of San Mateo, and then Foothill College before transferring to the University of California, Davis (UCD) where I earned a Bachelor’s degree in Physical Education. During my three years at UCD I had the great opportunity to work with various disabled people through college internships. At this point I became interested in incorporating my physical education skills into the disabled population when I discovered the field of Adapted Physical Education (Physical Education for the disabled). I then attended San Francisco State University where I earned my Master’s degree in Adapted Fitness for Disabled Adults.
In 1989 I became an adjunct faculty member in Physical Education and Adapted Physical Education here at the College of San Mateo and at Foothill College. Several years later I became a full time faculty member here at CSM.
My classes include General
Conditioning,
Adapted
Aquatics, Back
Care, Lifelong Fitness (Walk/Stride/Run), Weight Training, Cross Training Boot Camp, CPR and Spinning®
After playing football, and a semi long career in baseball, I became a javelin thrower (a long story!) for 13 years. I competed in the NCAA National Championships, two USA Track & Field Olympic Trials (1992, 1996), and a few USA Track and Field National Championships. Since retiring from track & field in 1996, I have been involved in martial arts, mountain biking, windsurfing and general fitness of all sorts. I am passionate about fitness and I bring this enthusiasm into the classroom. I am also a quote freak, here is one of my favorite:
“Speaking generally, all parts of the body which have a function, if used in moderation and exercised in labors to which each is accustomed, become thereby healthy and well developed, and age slowly; but if unused and left idle, they become liable to disease, defective in growth, and age quickly.”
—Hypocrites 50 BC