Department of Health and Kinesiology
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Tim Gavin
Dr. Tim Gavin has been appointed Head of the Department of Health and Kinesiology in Purdue University’s College of Health and Human Sciences. The appointment was effective August 1, 2012.
Prior to his appointment at Purdue, Gavin was on the faculty at East Carolina University (ECU) since 2000, both in the Department of Kinesiology in the College of Health and Human Performance and in the Department of Physiology at the Brody School of Medicine. He also was on the faculty in the School of Medicine at University of California (UCSD), San Diego from 1999-2000 after completing a post-doctoral fellowship at UCSD.
Gavin holds three degrees from Indiana University, Bloomington: a Ph.D. in Human Performance with a Minor in Endocrinology (1996); an M.S. in Exercise Physiology (1990); and a B.S. in Business (1985).
He is a Fellow of the American College of Sports Medicine. His research focuses on the effects of exercise and chronic disease (aging, obesity, diabetes) on skeletal muscle health. His work has been funded by the National Institutes of Health and the American Heart Association.
I am excited to join the faculty of Purdue University’s Department of Health and Kinesiology. I have long known the impact Purdue University has on the citizens of Indiana, the nation and the world. The Department has strong traditions of: producing educators, health and activity professionals, and scientists; engaging in the community; and producing future leaders. As I learned during the interview process, these traditions lay the foundation for the future of the Department and result from the dedication and hard work of the students, staff and faculty. I am impressed with the faculty’s dedication to the mission of Purdue and I am honored to have the opportunity to work with such an outstanding team.
The future is bright for the Department. The Department, along with colleagues in the Department of Nutrition Science, is looking forward to the building of a new facility to house the A.H. Ismail Center for Health, Exercise and Nutrition, our exercise testing and training facility. While the current home of the Ismail Center has served us well, the move to the new facility will increase our community outreach efforts and promote even greater research collaborations.
The Department does face challenges. As with many public universities, recent budget challenges at the federal and state levels have required us to identify innovative ways to achieve our mission. In the Department of Health and Kinesiology, we are concerned with persistent health disparities and barriers to physical activity that reduce individual health and quality of life around the world. Solutions to these challenges require interdisciplinary approaches and I look forward to working with my new colleagues in developing them. The Department’s vision of accelerated discovery and dissemination in the areas of health promotion, disease prevention and kinesiology will serve us well in these endeavors. As the new department head, I am excited to be a strong advocate of this vision.
The recent formation of the College of Health and Human Sciences recognizes the interdisciplinary approach necessary to meet the challenges of an ever changing world. The Department of Health and Kinesiology is inherently interdisciplinary and I envision a future with close and productive collaborations within the College as well as across Purdue. I look forward to working in such an environment and I hope to contribute to the continued success of our common mission.