SCW Fitness Education, the largest provider of continuing education in the world, has established the SCW Diversity Task Force designed to recruit and mentor presenters of color along with varying ethnic backgrounds to create unity and inclusion in the fitness industry.
SCW’s mission is to impact the health and fitness industry and get more people of diverse backgrounds to exercise. They hope to do this by expanding their presenter roster. Currently, the fitness industry lacks a mixture of race and ethnicity and SCW is striving to embrace more people of color and diversity as leaders.
“It is imperative and time for a ‘call to action’ to develop our industry and create diversity, unity and inclusion,” said Sara Kooperman, the CEO of SCW Fitness Education and WATERinMOTION. “I realize that this is going to be large effort, but this is something that we have never shied away from. SCW has always supported women as leaders in our industry and I feel equally as committed to embracing a deeper diversity message.”
SCW is looking for various backgrounds and ethnicities to join their team of professionals. The online application process is simple and the task force, along with SCW staff, are available for support.
Below are the SCW Task Force members:
Gail Bannister-Munn, the Flexibility Specialist, Core, Yoga, Pilates Coach with the New York Jets football team and owner of The Bannister Method Studio. She is the regional Group X manager for Crunch Fitness — Queens, Bronx and Brooklyn. Bannister-Munn teaches several different class formats at national conferences and is a fitness consultant for professional athletes in the NBA, NFL, NHL and MLB. She holds numerous certifications in several disciplines.
Siri Chilazi has an MBA from Harvard Business School, a master’s degree in public policy from the Harvard Kennedy School, and a BA in chemistry and physics from Harvard College. She is a research fellow at the Women and Public Policy Program and is a recognized expert in promoting gender equality. Chilazi is a master trainer for Cardio Yoga and RAQ THE BARRE by RAQISA, and her other specialty certifications include Pilates, Barre Above and Balletone.
Ronnie Fulton is a certified corrective exercise specialist, a certified personal trainer, and a licensed massage therapist with a passion for helping people to feel better in their bodies. As the creator of Rollassage, a group exercise format that uses massage tools to increase flexibility, minimize pain and improve performance, Fulton has taught thousands to embrace simple self-care strategies. With over 20 years of experience in the health and fitness industry, she regularly hosts sold-out workshops.
Sheldon McBee, is the director of personal training at Universal Athletic Club and the director of education and training for World of Dance Fitness. He is an ACE certified personal trainer and group fitness instructor with over 19 years of experience in health and fitness. He is an experienced international presenter, lecturer, educator, business consultant and fitness content developer. He has presented at IHRSA, IDEA, Canfitpro, MACMA, SCW and other industry conferences. McBee has been featured in Club Business International Magazine and has presented on video for Les Mills and Beachbody. He is based out of Lititz, Pennsylvania.
Dane Robinson is a certified fitness professional through the NASM and created the SCW Marketing and Sales for Personal Trainers Certification. After spending 10-plus years working his way to the top, Robinson impacts hundreds of people in private and group training classes and thousands of people across the country as a fitness coach on the “Daily Burn 365” in New York City.
