Aspen S Ankney, PhD, CMPC
Clinical Assistant Professor
Second Year Cohort Lead: Performance, Sport, and Exercise Psychology
Kinesiology and Nutrition
Pronouns: She/Her/Hers
Contact
Building & Room:
PEB
Address:
1919 W. Taylor St.
Office Phone:
Email:
About
Aspen Ankney is a Clinical Assistant Professor in the Performance, Sport, and Exercise Psychology Masters program. She is a Certified Mental Performance Consultant (CMPC) with AASP and an approved mentor. Her areas of expertise include performance excellence within high-risk occupations, helping performers reconnect to enjoyment in their chosen domain, acceptance-based approaches to performance, finding meaning through performance, and measuring performance interventions. She consults with military, law enforcement, and first responders, specializing in enhancing psychological flexibility. She also consults with winter sport athletes, traditional team sports, and aesthetic sports, with an expertise in endurance and extreme performance.
Aspen was the Program Evaluation Research Lead at the USAJFK Special Warfare Center and School, was selected to serve as Professional Mentor for new performance coaches at Special Operations Cognitive Enhancement for Performance (2019-2020), and was awarded a grant to present at AASP: Integrating Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) with Adaptability Training for Psychological and Behavioral Flexibility for Military Medics.
Selected Publications
Service to Community
Mental Skills Consultant: D1 Teams
Psychological Flexibility Training: California Police Departments
Research and Development: Department of Justice & Department of Natural Resources
Professional Leadership
Graduate Program Accreditation Committee Member, Association for Applied Sport Psychology
Campus Advisory Committee on Student Health and Wellbeing: Personal and Professional Development Community of Practice, University of Illinois Chicago
Certified Mental Performance Consultant (CMPC) Mentor, Association for Applied Sport Psychology
Program Evaluation Research Lead, U.S. Army John F. Kennedy Special Warfare Center and School
Lead Mental Performance Coach, Joint Special Operations Combat Medic - Training Center
Lead of Professional Development and Continuing Education, Special Operations Cognitive Enhancement for Performance
Level III Master Resilience Trainer, University of Pennsylvania and U.S. Army
Graduate Student Committee Member, Graduate Research and Policy Committee: University of Idaho
Graduate Student Senate Representative, Graduate and Professional Student Association: University of Idaho
Education
PhD, Education, University of Idaho, 2023
MA, Sport and Performance Psychology, University of Denver, 2012
BS, Psychology, Colorado State University, 2006
Licensures and Certifications
Professional Memberships
Association for Applied Sport Psychology (AASP)
American Psychology Association (APA): Division 47 - Society for Sport, Exercise, and Performance Psychology
Association for Contextual and Behavioral Science (ACBS)
Selected Presentations
Ankney, A., Ankney, I., Baumgardner, B., Sproles, D., & Evans, J. Association of Applied Sport Psychology, 36th Annual Conference, Conducted Virtually, October, 2021. 50 min Panel. Consulting with Performers in High-Risk Occupations: Considerations for Practitioners.
Ankney, A., Ankney, I., & Evans, J. Association of Applied Sport Psychology, 36th Annual Conference, Conducted Virtually, October, 2021. 50 min Panel. The Second ACT: Continnuing the Acceptance and Commitment Therapy Journey.
Ankney, A., & Ankney, I. Association of Applied Sport Psychology, 34th Annual Conference in Portland, OR, October, 2019. Podium Lecture. Results of Attention Training for Senior Military Leaders – The Effects of a Daily 15-Minute Mindfulness Based Training During a Professional Military Education Course.
Ankney, A., Ankney, I., Evans, J. Association of Applied Sport Psychology, 34th Annual Conference in Portland, OR, October, 2019. Podium Lecture. Integrating Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) with Adaptability Training for Psychological and Behavioral Flexibility for Military Medics.
Ankney, A., & Ankney, I., Evans, J., Sproles, D., Toft, N. Association of Applied Sport Psychology, 34th Annual Conference in Portland, OR, October, 2019. 50 min Workshop. Theories of Performance Excellence – Rationale, Conceptualization, and Application.
Ankney, A., & Barnicle, S. Association of Applied Sport Psychology, 30th Annual Conference in Indianapolis, IN, October, 2015. Podium Lecture. Examining the program effectiveness of a mental skills training intervention with Army Basic Combat Training Soldiers.
Ankney, A. College of Charleston, Charleston, South Carolina, April 2014. Mindfulness and Acceptance Approaches to Performance Excellence.