Sport Psychology
The Sport Psychology Team
Email Dr. Troy
Dr. Troy Moles is in his fifth year as Director of Counseling and Sport Psychology for IU Athletics. Prior to his arrival in Bloomington, he worked as the Sport Psychologist at Miami (Ohio) University. As a postdoctoral fellow at Premier Sport Psychology in Edina, Minn. (2016-18), he worked with the University of Minnesota, USA Curling, and Macalester College. From 2010-15, Dr. Troy was a senior consultant at the University of North Texas (UNT) Center for Sport Psychology and Performance Enhancement. He completed his Ph.D. at UNT and a doctoral internship at the University of Missouri Counseling Center (2015-16). Prior to his doctoral training, Dr. Troy earned a M.S. from Chatham University in 2010, a B.S. from Allegheny College in 2006, and was a student-athlete on the Gators track & field team (2002-2006).
Originally from the Philadelphia area, Dr. Troy now resides in Bloomington.
Email Kelli
Kelli A. Monedero, LCSW, CMPC is in her fifth year as Athletic Counselor for the Office of Counseling and Sport Psychology.
Sport Social Worker. Curious Doer. Attached to the process.
Kelli’s first sport exposure was playing pee-wee league baseball at the age of 8. She remembers sitting in the outfield picking blades of grass because she was bored waiting for the ball. Until she heard her name being called, more like yelled and there was a fly ball headed her way. The best ending to a story is what happened, she caught the fly ball!! She never played baseball again or softball for that matter, but therein started her love for sport and competitive play.
She is a 2002 graduate of Central Michigan University and a 2007 graduate of the University of Tennessee where she got her master’s in social work.
Prior to joining to the IU Athletics staff, she worked for IUPUI doing mental health counseling with their student athletes. She has worked in a myriad of settings including an outdoor wilderness camp, k-12 public education as a therapist and school social worker, and in a community mental health organization. Monedero was honored for her work as the Person of the Year as her role as a school social worker in 2018.
She was also a track & field coach for 20 years and has coached in Michigan, Tennessee and Indiana where she earned accolades as Track and Field Coach of the Year in 2012.
Kelli resides in Bloomington and considers herself a plant lover.
Dr. Jesse Merise is in his first year as a postdoctoral fellow for the Office of Counseling and Sport Psychology at IU Athletics.
Prior to joining the IU Athletics staff, he completed his Ph.D. in Counseling Psychology at Seton Hall University (NJ) and was a doctoral intern at the University of Central Florida (2024 – 25). Throughout his doctoral training, Dr. Jesse Merise gained clinical experience working with high performers and athletes with the New York Football Giants, Seton Hall Athletics, and the Department of Veterans Affairs. Prior to his doctoral training he gained his masters in Psychological Studies with concentration is the Psychology of Sport and Exercise from Seton Hall University (2018).
He is also a 2015 graduate from Penn State University, where he was a student-athlete on the football team (2012 – 2014) and a student intern/coach during spring ball (2015). Following his undergraduate studies, he was a football coach for four years (2018 – 21) at his alma mater Hillside High School (NJ) where he won two State Championships (Group II).
Dr. Jesse Merise considers himself a passionate sports lover, competitor and loves spending his down time with family/friends. He is originally from New Jersey and now resides in Bloomington.
What is sport psychology?
Sport Psychology is an interdisciplinary field of study and practical application (encompassing primarily psychology, other mental health fields and the sport sciences). Our sport psychology team primarily focuses on the practical application of how sport influences student-athletes from a mental health standpoint and how student-athletes can apply mental health and mental skills principles in sport to improve performance and functioning in everyday life.
What We Do
Our counseling and sport psychology team provides mental health services in individual and group or team format. We view mental health on a continuum and account for this in our interventions. Individually, we may see people anywhere on the mental health continuum (ranging from more severe mental health concerns to normative or everyday problems to optimal mental skills and mindset training). We also meet with individual student-athletes from different sports on different mental health and mental skills training or certain psychoeducational or process-oriented groups. When we work with teams and coaches, we typically focus on normative group dynamics functioning to optimal mental skills and mindset training.
Contact information
The best way to contact us regarding scheduling a regular appointment is via e-mail at sptpsych@iu.edu. You may also contact Dr. Troy Moles (tmoles@iu.edu) or Kelli Monedero (kmoneder@iu.edu) if you have more specific questions.
Confidentiality
Confidentiality is important to our team of licensed mental health professionals. We cover the limits of confidentiality in our initial meetings with our student-athletes and answer any related questions.
Additional resources on campus
IU Health Center: Counseling and Psychological Services (CAPS) Office (24/7)
(812) 855-5711 - option 1
8:00 a.m.-5:00 p.m. for individual and group counseling appointments
Crisis Counseling Hours (24/7)
Sexual Assault Crisis Services (SACS) (24/7)
(812) 855-8900
IU Police Department-Non-Emergency Number
(812) 855-4111
IU CAPS
Visit their website
Resources off campus
National Suicide Prevention Lifeline (24/7)
Dial 988
Emergency
911
For Staff-IU Employee Assistance Program (EAP-24/7)
1-888-881-5462 or SupportLink.com
Resources on campus
Calm App
As a IU student-athlete or staff member, you are allowed free access to the Premium Version of the Calm app, as sponsored by the B10. This app is a resource that will allow you to absorb stress relieving, mindfulness promoting, and better sleep-inducing music, sounds, and scripts. Follow the link below and use your IU e-mail address to get access to your account. If you already have another version of the Calm App you were using before, we encourage you delete the app entirely before reinstalling through the link provided with your IU e-mail address. Please contact Dr. Troy Moles at tmoles@iu.edu if you experience any further difficulties.
Mindflow
Book a Session
As a IU student-athlete, you have access to “Mindflow,” a sport psychology consulting agency that has licensed mental health providers and mental performance consultants available to meet with. This resource is provided free to you via a Valinhos Foundation grant to our athletics department. Please use your IU e-mail to sign up and search for a provider at the link below. If you have any difficulties or questions about this service, please contact Dr. Troy Moles at tmoles@iu.edu.
IU Athletics Mental Health Task Force
The IU Athletics Mental Health Task Force prioritizes education and outreach in an effort to reduce barriers, promote inclusivity and normalize and destigmatize mental health for the Indiana University Department of Intercollegiate Athletics. The Task Force’s mission is to be proactive and preventative, while increasing accessibility to services through interdisciplinary collaboration and creating safe and accepting spaces that enhance the mental health and well-being of student-athletes, staff and coaches as well as the Indiana University community.