by Sarah Trask
Class of 2025

Background

Professor Aaron Aslakson got his bachelor’s degree in exercise science at Concordia College, Moorhead in 2005. He then attended Minnesota State University in Mankato where he earned his master’s degree also in exercise science. After this, he pursued his doctorate in health and human performance at Concordia University in Chicago. 

Between earning his master’s and doctoral degrees, Aslakson worked in the private sector of the fitness industry for 15 years. He worked 13 years in senior living for a Minneapolis company that had fitness programs in 11 locations across the Twin Cities and the greater outstate area, as well as in Wisconsin. For approximately 10 years Aslakson did training for the fitness program. During the last three years of that time, he had an administrative role helping to develop the fitness programs and new locations. Before that, he worked multiple seasons with the Minnesota Twins’ strength and conditioning program. Currently, Dr. Aslakson is in his third year of teaching at Crown College in the Biological and Health Sciences Department. He specializes in the exercise science program. 

Faith in Motion 

In his classes, Professor Aslakson highlights what a thorough creation the human body is, and he encourages his students to be inquisitive in exploring how to take care of it. “When I think about the human body as a creation of Christ, I do not think that there is any more magnificent of a creation,” he said “It was designed in certain ways that we don’t have to think about. It was designed to grow. It was designed to die. It was designed to adapt. It was designed to heal itself when it is sick. None of this stuff we have to think about.” In exercise science, Aslakson says a program is designed, and the human body adapts to it. “Because that is the nature that God designed for it, we don’t have to think about how to get the body to heal and adapt according to the program. God created it to do it on its own as an automatic part of creation,” Aslakson added “To me, it’s a powerful way to think about how faith and exercise interact.” 

Ready for the Future

Focusing on what’s ahead, Professor Aslakson wants to ensure that his students feel ready and equipped with knowledge. He wants to use the program to best prepare students for working in this field. “The biggest thing that I want to do in my time here is to send students out who feel like they are prepared to go do the things that they want to do in this industry.” Aslakson says he wants his students to be leaders who are ready to grow and develop in their passions when they leave Crown.

Q&A

Question: What class/classes are you most passionate about teaching and why? 
Answer: “There are a number of classes that I really enjoy teaching, each having their own unique characteristics and application to the field. I love teaching courses such as Exercise Physiology and Biomechanics, because they are a true base for many concepts within the field. I also enjoy teaching courses such as Exercise Testing and Interpretation and Exercise Prescription because this is where students really get to practically apply the concepts they are learning to various populations. It is fun to see the progression through the various classes and have students find areas of the field they are passionate about.”

Question: What is your teaching style and how does it inspire academic excellence in your students?
Answer: “My teaching style is applied. In a lot of my classes, students are doing projects and lab-based things where they get to learn by doing, and then ask questions based on that doing. I want them to be able to figure out how to work with each other as a team through these projects. I want my students to come into my class feeling like it represents what it’s like to work someplace where they must contribute to a team. ”

Question: What advice would have been helpful when you were a student?
Answer: “Ask questions! Be inquisitive and ask the “why?” Desire to know more! Students who ask more end up knowing more.”

Question: What is your favorite thing about being a professor at Crown College?
Answer: : “The relationships that I get to build with the students. I have stayed in contact with some of the students who have come and gone in my years here. We get the opportunity here to get to know our students and care about them. Also, being part of a small faculty group has been great! We get to know each other like those in a big university wouldn’t. At a bigger institution, you would be siloed into your department, but here faculty from all the departments work side by side.”