Dr. Rudy Dunlap is a professor in the Department of Health and Human Performance and the Undergraduate and Graduate Program Coordinator for the Leisure & Sport Management Program at Middle Tennessee State University. Dr. Dunlap holds B.A. degrees in Anthropology and Philosophy from Appalachian State University in Boone, North Carolina, and a M.Ed. and Ph.D. in Recreation and Leisure Studies from The University of Georgia, Athens, Georgia. Prior to Middle Tennessee State University, Dr. Dunlap served as an assistant professor in the Department of Recreation, Park & Tourism Sciences at Texas A&M University.

Dr. Dunlap’s research has generally addressed leisure as a socio-cultural context in which community development and social changes take place. Within this framing, his previous projects have explored volunteer participation in community gardening projects as settings for place connection, solidarity formation, and the exercise of agency. More recently his research has examined urban cycling and the manner in which individuals practice the activity as a means of both connecting to place and re/appropriating urban space. Dr. Dunlap’s scholarship has also explored a diverse range of qualitative research methods, including collective memory work, so-called gonzo ethnography and fiction as a tool for inquiry. Dr. Dunlap regularly teaches courses about community development, qualitative research, outdoor recreation management, and the history and philosophy of leisure and sport.

Since January 2021, Dr. Dunlap has served as a Co-Editor of Leisure Sciences: An Interdisciplinary Journal. in addition to overseeing the journal's day-to-day operations, Dr. Dunlap works with his fellow Co-Editors to chart the journal's strategic direction and its role in shaping the future of leisure research.

When not in his office, Dr. Dunlap enjoys riding his mountain bike, hiking, and camping with his family.

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