Kailei Foltmer

Dr. Kailei Foltmer is a scholar, educator, and recreation professional whose work examines the intersections of gender, sport, identity, and social inclusion. She earned her PhD in Community Resources and Development from Arizona State University, where her research focused on women’s experiences in sports culturally coded as masculine. Her dissertation, Masks, Muscles, & Master Narratives: A Qualitative Analysis of the Lived Experiences of Women Athletes in Masculine-Coded Sports, explored how collegiate and Olympic-level athletes navigate gender expectations, bodily ideals, identity, belonging, and legitimacy within traditionally masculine sporting environments.

Drawing on qualitative and arts-based methods, including semi-structured interviews, photovoice, and photo elicitation, Dr. Foltmer examines how athletes negotiate dominant cultural narratives and strategically challenge or reproduce gender norms. Her research draws from theories of gender performativity, dramaturgy, identity, and objectification to center athletes’ lived experiences and illuminate the often-unseen work required of women competing in masculine-coded sports. Her broader research agenda also considers the role of youth sport in fostering confidence, belonging, leadership, and positive development, particularly among girls and young people from historically underserved communities.

Dr. Foltmer’s scholarship has appeared or is forthcoming in the Journal of Youth Development, World Leisure Journal, and International Journal of Sport Sciences. She has also contributed chapters and case studies addressing recreational sport management and participant-centered programming with adolescent Latina/x youth. She regularly presents her research at academic and professional conferences, including the Academy of Leisure Sciences Conference, the National Recreation and Park Association Annual Congress, and the Applied Sport Management Association Conference. Her research has received multiple honors through Arizona State University’s Institute for Social Science Research, including a second-place award and several honorable mentions.

As an educator, Dr. Foltmer has taught courses across community resources and development, recreation, sport, wellness, exercise science, service learning, and community evaluation at Arizona State University and Belmont University. Her teaching emphasizes experiential learning, applied problem-solving, inclusive practice, and meaningful connections between course concepts and students’ professional goals. She strives to create welcoming learning environments in which students feel supported, challenged, and encouraged to bring their own experiences and perspectives into the classroom. She has also mentored undergraduate researchers and delivered invited lectures and workshops on gender equity in sport, inclusive programming, qualitative and quantitative research methods, team building, and youth program administration.

Dr. Foltmer’s academic work is grounded in extensive professional experience in recreation programming, youth development, sport operations, and community engagement. As Youth Programs Supervisor at the Sacramento State Aquatic Center, she has led a team of more than 40 staff members and supported boating and water-safety programs serving over 300 young people each week. She has also developed and expanded community-based sport opportunities through Desert West Recreation and the Boys & Girls Clubs, including girl-centered programming designed to promote confidence, belonging, and sustained participation. Her additional experience encompasses collegiate athlete development, campus wellness, equestrian programming, ranch management, and recreation-based leadership training.

Across her research, teaching, and professional practice, Dr. Foltmer is committed to translating scholarship into meaningful action. Her work seeks to help educators, coaches, recreation professionals, sport administrators, and community organizations create environments in which more people, especially women, girls, and members of underserved communities, can participate, belong, and thrive.