Dr. SriPadmini Chennapragada, originally from Hyderabad, India, is a leader in the field of Adapted Physical Activity and Education (APA/E). She earned her PhD from Texas Woman’s University (TWU) in Denton, Texas, with a major focus in Adapted Physical Education and minor specializations in Educational Leadership and Sport Management. A Systems Theorist, through qualitative methodologies, her research projects focus on promoting equitable sport and physical activity opportunities for persons with disabilities (PwD) in India. Informed by her experiences with U.S. services for PwD, she designs her projects to bring APA initiatives to schools and communities in developing countries.
She is a published author, journal reviewer and scholar-activist who has served on committees with India’s National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) speaking on issues related to sports and disability rights of Indians with disabilities. Additionally, she has been a subject-matter expert on disability sport cases in India (Sameeha Barvin; Special Olympics Bharat with Pravda Law Associates, Chennai.
Dr. Chennapragada also holds a Master of Science in Kinesiology (APA) from TWU and a Bachelor of Physiotherapy (B.P.T) from Dr. NTR University of Health Sciences in India. In 2016, she connected with Sunil Jain, Founder Trustee of Astha, a nonprofit based in Bengaluru, which supports equitable sports opportunities for PwD. Since then, she has been an advocate for the Indian Wheelchair Tennis Tour (IWTT), an Astha initiative that promotes wheelchair tennis in India. She further honed her expertise by completing the United States Olympic and Paralympic Committee (USOPC)’s Paralympic Athletics National Classifier Training in 2017.
As the Founder and Director of the Adapted Sports India (ASI) Foundation, Dr. Chennapragada works to advance equitable access to sports for PwD in India. Through the foundation, she leads education and awareness campaigns that highlight the need for adaptive sports in schools, communities, and beyond. Her efforts also extend to supporting research initiatives aimed at amplifying the presence of Indian authors in globally peer-reviewed academic journals. In addition, she actively promotes #AdaptedSportsIndia on social media to drive awareness and support for inclusive athletic training and empowerment programs for PwD across India.
Her updated curriculum vitae can be accessed by clicking here.