AHS - Key Persons
Alana Harris completed her PhD at the University of Illinois in the Renal Research Group in Kinesiology and Community, with dissertation work in lifestyle behavior change, Physical Activity and Nutrition, in chronically ill populations. She has been teaching in the Department of Kinesiology and Community Health since 2013. Dr. Harris is the Associate Director of Assessment and Student Wellness for Campus Recreation where she provides leadership to: Fitness Programs, Adventure Recreation, the Campus Bike Center, the Instructional Kitchen, and the Campus' student food pantry. Alana specializes in applied exercise prescription, exercise prescription for persons managing disease, and in high performance strength and conditioning. She teaches courses to prepare students to pursue national certification (ACSM, NSCA) and/ or to work in applied exercise settings. Alana is responsible for the development and reporting of assessment efforts for Campus Recreation facilities, services, and programs and works actively with researchers on campus to conduct projects in these spaces.
Job Titles:
- Instructor and Coordinator of Global Affairs
Job Titles:
- Assistant Director MPH Graduate Program
Job Titles:
- Academic Advisor for Kinesiology
- Academic Advisor for Kinesiology ( Last Names L - Z )
- Academic Advisor, Kinesiology ( M - Z )
Job Titles:
- Clinical Assistant Professor
Job Titles:
- Clinic Business Specialist
Job Titles:
- Associate Dean for Faculty Affairs
- Interim Director of I - Health, Associate Dean for Faculty Affairs
Job Titles:
- Associate Professor / Associate Head for Undergraduate Studies
Job Titles:
- Academic Advisor for Interdisciplinary Health Sciences
- Academic Advisor for Interdisciplinary Health Sciences ( Last Names M - Z )
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- Associate Director, External Engagement
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- Teaching Assistant Professor
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- Coordinator of Recruitment and Admissions
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- Instructional Media Specialist
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- Member of the Adjunct and Affiliated Faculty Team
- Research Scientist
- Research Scientist at the Interdisciplinary Health Sciences Institute
Brandi Barnes is a research scientist at the Interdisciplinary Health Sciences Institute (IHSI). Her primary role is to work with faculty, administration, and external stakeholders to identify, expand, and support new initiatives aimed at reducing health disparities. She achieves this by facilitating collaborative research proposals and by organizing campus and community events, programs, and workshops. Dr. Barnes also serves as a program coordinator for the Community-Academic Scholars Initiative, where she mentors undergraduates during a ten-week community-based research experience. In addition, she works with the Health Sciences Data Analytics Core at IHSI to collect and analyze data for strategic planning.
Brandi Barnes has a background in health promotion and health education program implementation and evaluation from her prior experience at a behavioral health treatment and research center. She earned her bachelor's, master's, and PhD from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Her doctoral degree is in community health with a specialization in health psychology. Her research areas of interest include preventing stigma in accessing mental health care services and barriers to treatment.
Job Titles:
- Associate Professor / Director of Graduate Studies
- Director of Graduate Studies
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- Academic Skills Specialist for I - LEAP
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- Professor Emeritus of Recreation, Sport and Tourism
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- Teaching Assistant Professor
Dr. Clarke's primary research agenda focuses on examining the use of physical activity interventions as a solution for depression and anxiety. She is interested in how researchers conceptualize their research participants, the disorders in question, and the relationship between the disorder and PA. She is interested in the production of knowledge in this area and social perceptions of people with mental illness. Dr. Clarke is currently collaborating on a network-oriented analysis of citations of meta-analyses and systematic reviews of PA and depression. She is also conducting a policy analysis of all mental health policies, services, and programs for student athletes compared to the larger student body in the Power 5 Conference schools. This analyzed how each school adapted services and policies to meet the unique needs of college students and student athletes during COVID-19. Her other collaborations are broadly focused on biosocial approaches to health disparities.
Job Titles:
- Interim Associate Dean for Undergraduate and Graduate Affairs
- Professor
Job Titles:
- Assistant Director, Master of Health Administration
Job Titles:
- Academic Advisor
- Academic Advisor for Speech and Hearing Science
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- Teaching Assistant Professor
Job Titles:
- Adjunct Instructor
- Member of the Adjunct and Affiliated Faculty Team
Christy N. Bazan is a Licensed Environmental Health Practitioner and Master's Certified Health Educator. She has an MPH from Benedictine University in Health Education and BS in Environmental Health from Illinois State University.
She has taught in higher education for over 25 years with primary interests in Community and Public Health and School Health Education. Her passions in the field include disease prevention, drug abuse prevention education, and contemporary health issues.
When she is not teaching, she is engaged in her Community of Bloomington-Normal, IL, where she serves at the President of the YMCA Board. She loves cooking, golfing, walking, exercising, and spending time with family and friends.
Job Titles:
- Adjunct Instructor ( Retired )
Job Titles:
- Academic Advisor for Interdisciplinary Health Sciences ( Last Names a - L )
- Academic Advisor, Interdisciplinary Health Sciences
Job Titles:
- Adjunct Instructor ( Retired )
Job Titles:
- Assistant Professor
- Department of Kinesiology and Community Health
Dr. Diego Hernández-Saavedra received his BS Degree in Pharmaceutical Biological Chemistry from the Autonomous University of Queretaro, Mexico in 2012. Thereafter, he completed his PhD degree in Nutritional Sciences at the University of Illinois in 2018. After completing his PhD, he went to The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center to complete his postdoctoral training in 2021. Dr. Hernández-Saavedra's research program focuses on the beneficial effects of exercise to understand the adaptations in key metabolites and lipids in health and disease, the epigenetic mechanisms associated exercise that improve metabolism and bioenergetics, and the transgenerational effect of sedentarism and exercise on metabolism and cardiac function.
Job Titles:
- Associate Professor
- Department of Kinesiology and Community Health
- Licensed Clinical Psychologist
Dr. Robyn L. Gobin, Ph.D. is a licensed clinical psychologist with expertise in interpersonal trauma and evidence-based treatments for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and other trauma-related conditions. She directs the Transforming Trauma and Mental Health Research Laboratory in the Department of Kinesiology and Community Health, where she is an Associate Professor. Dr. Gobin's research investigates how individual, cultural, and societal factors lead to unique outcomes in the aftermath of interpersonal trauma. The ultimate goal of her research is to promote healing in culturally diverse communities, reduce mental health stigma,and increase treatment engagement among individuals with PTSD. She is also interested in the use of mindfulness, acceptance, and compassion-based interventions to enhance well-being. Dr. Gobin has served as principal or co-investigator on past and ongoing studies funded by the International Society for the Study of Trauma and Dissociation, the American Psychological Association Minority Fellowship Program, and the Chez Center for Veterans. She has authored several articles in the field of traumatic stress studies and presented her work nationally and internationally. Dr. Gobin is consistently involved in public education and community service. She regularly speaks at community events and hosts workshops about mental health, self-care,and mindfulness. She holds leadership positions on national boards and non-profit committees and is active in clinical practice. Her work has been recognized by the top professional associations in her field: she was the recipient of a Citizen Psychologist Presidential Citation from the American Psychological Association(APA), the Carolyn Payton Early Career Award from the Society for the Psychology of Black Women (APA Division 35 Section 1), and she received Early Career Awards from her alma mater, Wesleyan College, and the National Register of Health Service Psychologists.
Dr. Shelby Keye received her bachelor's degree from Virginia Tech in Human Nutrition, Foods, and Exercise, followed by a master's degree in Exercise and Health Sciences from University of Massachusetts Boston. She completed her PhD in Kinesiology at the University of Illinois Urbana Champaign. Her research areas of interest involve investigating the influence of physical activity patterns in children on their cognitive and motor functions. She has a particular interest in populations typically understudied in the field such as such as preschool aged children and toddlers to better understand development, as well as children from lower socioeconomic status backgrounds. She also is working to develop and implement community based interventions that focus on increasing physical activity and improving physical fitness to optimize brain health and development for children. Her lab will take an interdisciplinary approach by using methods commonly used in areas of kinesiology and cognitive neuroscience, to assess outcomes related childhood executive functions, physical fitness and coordination skills.
Job Titles:
- Director of Career Services and Honors Programs
- Interim Undergraduate Recruiter
Job Titles:
- Assistant Dean for Undergraduate Recruitment, Advising and Enrichment
- Assistant Dean, Undergraduate Recruitment, Advising, and Enrichment
Job Titles:
- Leadership / Physical Education Teacher
Job Titles:
- Assistant Dean of Budget and Strategic Business Operations
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- Communications Specialist
Job Titles:
- Associate Dean for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion
- Professor
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- Instructional Media Specialist
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- Research Assistant Professor
Job Titles:
- Academic Advisor for Community Health ( Last Names a - K )
- Academic Advisor, Community Health ( a - K )
Job Titles:
- Teaching Associate Professor / Director of Diversity Equity Inclusion / Special Projects
Job Titles:
- Teaching Assistant Professor
- Teaching Assistant Professor / Department of Recreation, Sport and Tourism
Jacob Fredericks earned a PhD in kinesiology from Pennsylvania State University and a master's degree in educational leadership from St. Lawrence University.
His research concentrates on histories of race, sport, and culture. For example, he has analyzed the influence of Black American marathoners on expanding access to the sport during the 1950s and 1960s and the impact of transnational track and field competitions between the United States and South Africa during the second half of the twentieth century.
Dr. Fredericks teaches courses that examine the dynamics of recreation, sport, and tourism experiences through active engagement in and beyond the classroom. He has also served as a track and field coach at the collegiate level.
Job Titles:
- Teaching Associate Professor
Job Titles:
- Academic Advisor for Recreation, Sport and Tourism
- Undergraduate Academic Advisor
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- Assistant Dean for Advancement
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- Associate Dean for Research
- Associate Dean for Research / Director of CHAD / Mottier Family Professor
- Research
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- Clinical Assistant Professor
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- Assistant Director of Human Resources
Job Titles:
- Assistant Professor
- Teaching Assistant Professor
Jesse Couture is a Teaching Assistant Professor who joined the Department of Kinesiology and Community Health in January 2023. Dr. Couture earned his PhD at the University of British Columbia, in Vancouver, Canada. Following the completion of his doctoral studies, Dr. Couture was a postdoctoral research fellow at the University of Ottawa. His research focuses on the relationships between digital technology and sport-based communities. He is particularly interested in the use of digital health technologies amongst recreational athletes and seeks to better understand the increasingly widespread use of self-tracking devices and online sport-based social platforms. His research has been funded by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC).
Job Titles:
- Academic Advisor, Interdisciplinary Health Sciences
Job Titles:
- Academic Skills Specialist for I - LEAP
Job Titles:
- Infrastructure Specialist
Job Titles:
- Professor Emeritus of Leisure Studies
Job Titles:
- Director
- Director of Graduate Studies
- Professor Emeritus of Leisure Studies
Job Titles:
- Coordinator of Internship Programs
Julia Hartman received her Bachelor's in Music Education with a vocal emphasis from Millikin University. While teaching as a full-time music teacher, she received her Masters' in Music Education with a technology emphasis from Illinois State University. After teaching elementary and middle school choir, band, and general music for 11 years she joined the University of Illinois in 2017. She worked for five years creating the new ATLAS Internship Program in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences. The program focused on majors without a clear career path after graduation helping students acquire skills and experience to enter the workforce. The ATLAS Internship program assisted over 600 LAS majors during Julia's time there. Julia joined the College Applied Health Sciences in June of 2022 to oversee experiential learning experiences. Julia enjoys connecting with students and helping them achieve their internship as well as college goals. She lives in Urbana with her family which includes her sons and dog. She can frequently be found playing music at the Rose Bowl Tavern and lifting weights at the ARC.
Job Titles:
- Academic Advisor for Kinesiology
- Academic Advisor for Kinesiology ( Last Names a - K )
Job Titles:
- Assistant Director, Health Technology Education Program
Job Titles:
- Clinical Assistant Professor
Job Titles:
- Professor and Department Head
- Professor and Head
Kim C. Graber is Professor and Head in the Department of Kinesiology and Community Health and the former Director of the Campus Honors Program at the University of Illinois. She received her undergraduate degree from the University of Iowa, her master's from Columbia University Teachers College, and her doctorate from the University of Massachusetts. Her research interests include children's wellness, legislative policy mandates, and the scholarship of teaching and learning. She has published numerous articles in peer-refereed journals and books and has presented her work at dozens of national and international conferences.
She co-authored a book titled Physical Education Activity for Elementary Classroom Teachers. She served as president and secretary of the Research Consortium, president of the National Association for Sport and Physical Education, and chair of the Curriculum and Instruction Academy. She serves or has served on the Faculty Senate as Vice-Chair, Senate Executive Committee, University Senates Conference, Committee on Committees, Provost's Council on Gender Equity, Chancellor Search Committee, Provost Search Committee, Teaching Advancement Board, Graduate College Executive Committee, Illinois Leadership Coordinating Committee. She is a University of Illinois Distinguished Teacher/Scholar and received the Campus Award for Excellence in Undergraduate Teaching. She is Fellow #526 in the National Academy of Kinesiology and a Fellow in SHAPE America.
Job Titles:
- Professor Emeritas / Interim Director of Undergraduate Studies
- Professor Emeritas of Recreation, Sport and Tourism
Job Titles:
- Assistant Teaching Professor
- Teaching Assistant Professor
Kristen DiFilippo is an Assistant Teaching Professor in the Department of Kinesiology and Community Health for the Interdisciplinary Health Sciences Program. She earned her PhD and BS at the University of Illinois and her MS at Eastern Illinois University. Her research explores the optimization of health through nutrition education for behavior change. Her work focuses on the evaluation and use of mobile app based strategies to support the management and prevention of chronic diseases. For this research, she received the Nutrition Education for the Public Dietetics Practice Groups Award of Excellence. Her recent work also centers on reducing food insecurity in rural communities.
Job Titles:
- Teaching Assistant Professor / Assistant Head
A three-time graduate of the University of Illinois, Kristi Carlson has been teaching in the Department of Kinesiology and Community Health since 2012. Dr. Carlson specializes in physical education teacher education, teaching in the areas of physical education methods and motor development, but also teaches a number of core classes related to motor learning, movement analysis, and professional preparation. Dr. Carlson also serves as the Pedagogy Coordinator for the department, through which she assists with program admittance, teacher licensure, and state and program requirements. Her research interests focus on teacher licensure requirements and integrating both fitness and academic concepts throughout the physical education curriculum.
Job Titles:
- Teaching Assistant Professor
Job Titles:
- Director
- Director of Graduate Studies
Job Titles:
- Associate Professor, Director of Undergraduate Studies
Job Titles:
- Associate Professor / Associate Head for Graduate Studies
Job Titles:
- Assistant Dean for Marketing and Communications
Job Titles:
- Office Support Specialist
Job Titles:
- Professor Emeritas of Recreation, Sport and Tourism
Job Titles:
- Program Director, Master of Healthcare Administration
Job Titles:
- Marketing and Communications Graduate Hourly
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- Teaching Assistant Professor
Job Titles:
- Senior Director of Advancement
Job Titles:
- Director of Strategic Initiatives for Kinesiology and Community Health
- Professor
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- Assistant Director of Finance and Administration
Job Titles:
- Senior Director of Advancement
Job Titles:
- Assistant Professor
- Assistant Professor / Department of Kinesiology and Community Health
With his education and training in kinesiology, biomechanics, and adaptive sports medicine, Dr. Hanks' research aims to determine the relationships among exercise and shoulder biomechanics, pain, and pathology in pediatric and adult manual wheelchair users. He is also interested in exploring physical activity, shoulder health, and community participation in student service members/Veterans who use manual wheelchairs for campus and community mobility. Dr. Hanks graduated with a B.S. in Athletic Training from the University of Michigan and an M.Ed. in Exercise Science and a Ph.D. in Kinesiology from Auburn University. He completed a three-year Postdoctoral Fellowship at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee and is a Certified Athletic Trainer with previous clinical experience working with youth, collegiate, and Paralympic athletes.
Dr. Hanks' lab website can be found here.
Job Titles:
- Teaching Assistant Professor
Job Titles:
- Professor Emeritus of Leisure Studies
Job Titles:
- Clinical Associate Professor
Job Titles:
- Manager of Help Desk Services
Job Titles:
- Associate Professor / Associate Head for Research
Nancy Greenwalt received her bachelor's degree in speech communication from the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign. She then worked in nonprofit fundraising and community organizing with a focus on access to healthcare. Greenwalt has lead healthcare organizations for the last fifteen years and is currently working with community health centers throughout Illinois as a healthcare and nonprofit consultant. She is the former executive director of Promise Healthcare, a federally qualified health center and former executive director of SmileHealthy a nonprofit dental organization.
Her work focuses on delivering care to medically underserved populations by driving growth and heightening impact while increasing patient satisfaction, retention and the bottom-line. She builds cultures focused on achieving results, improving quality and propelling operational excellence. Through experience leading organizations, she has developed the ability to define organizational needs and gaps relating to staffing and resources to meet strategic goals. Greenwalt's community service experience includes board and advisory committee positions with the Eastern Illinois Foodbank, Carle Illinois College of Medicine/Stephens Family Research Institute, University of Illinois/McKinley Health Center Special Populations Faculty Committee, Champaign County Board and Champaign County Regional Planning Commission.
Greenwalt's areas of expertise include Care Delivery for Underserved Populations, Continuous Quality Improvement, Government and Funder Relations, Board Governance & Leadership, Business Transformation, Profit & Loss & Operational Management, Revenue & Profit Growth, and Merger & Acquisition Prep & Integration.
Recognition of Greenwalt's work includes the University of Illinois College of Liberal Arts and Sciences Alumni Humanitarian, University of Illinois/McKinley Health Center Special Population Awards, United Way of Champaign County Difference Maker Award, Governor's Hometown Achievement Award, and the Illinois Nurses Association's Innovation in Health Care Access Award.
Job Titles:
- Office Support Specialist
Job Titles:
- Assistant Professor
- Department of Kinesiology and Community Health
Otávio Leão holds a BS in Kinesiology, Master's in Public Health and a PhD in Epidemiology. His primary field of research is Physical Activity and Public Health, focusing on longitudinal studies to evaluate the effect of physical activity on child development and health throughout the life- course. He has extensive experience with Epidemiology and Statistics and has applied these methods in his research. He has also taught Statistics and Epidemiology to undergraduate and graduate students. He has been working with the 2015 Pelotas (Brazil) Birth Cohort as a database manager since 2018, where he also conducted his postdoctoral training.
Job Titles:
- Professor, Department Head
Job Titles:
- Academic Advisor for Community Health ( Last Names L - Z )
Job Titles:
- Alvin M. and Ruth L. Sandall Professor
- Director of MPH Program
Job Titles:
- Vice President of Clinical and Business Intelligence
Phillip currently serves as the vice president of clinical and business intelligence. Based in Urbana, IL, Carle Health is a vertically integrated system with more than 11,500 employees in its five hospitals, multi-specialty physician groups, health plans and associated healthcare businesses including the Carle Illinois College of Medicine, the world's first engineering-based medical school.
As a senior health administration executive, he is responsible for the procurement and analysis of data to support the health system. His team enables advanced data analytics, facilitate clinical quality initiatives, support financial analysis, advance clinical research studies, and provide data for key business and market decisions.
Prior to joining the leadership team at Carle, he worked as a director in PriceWaterhouseCoopers' global healthcare practice, where he worked with and advised health plans, providers, and government associations. Phil has also held leadership roles at Cerner Corporation and brings a depth of business analytics, solution architecture, and IT project management experience. Phil has led and supported over 40 projects, across 11 countries, on four continents to support clinical transformation and patient care.
A Champaign native and graduate of University Laboratory High School, Rowell received his Master of Jurisprudence in Health Law and Bachelor of Business Administration from Loyola University. Mr. Rowell is also an adjunct professor of legal issues in healthcare information technology, and healthcare policy and ethics in the graduate school of Health Professions at Sacred Heart University. He also holds a teaching appointment in the Master of Healthcare Administration program at Loyola University Chicago.
Job Titles:
- Practice Manager, Audiology and Speech - Language Pathology Clinic
Job Titles:
- Teaching Assistant Professor
Job Titles:
- Professor Emeritus of Leisure Studies
Job Titles:
- Academic Skills Specialist for I - LEAP
Job Titles:
- Clinical Assistant Professor
Job Titles:
- Teaching Assistant Professor
Job Titles:
- Director of Online Learning
Job Titles:
- Teaching Associate Professor
Job Titles:
- Member of the Adjunct and Affiliated Faculty Team
Job Titles:
- Teaching Assistant Professor
Job Titles:
- Embedded Clinical Counselor
Job Titles:
- Assistant Professor
- Department of Kinesiology and Community Health
Dr. Aguiñaga is committed to advancing the scientific knowledge that addresses health disparities in cognition and dementia-related diseases through community-based physical activity research. She received an Alzheimer's Association Research Fellowship to Promote Diversity grant for a study of sitting time, activity, and dementia in underserved populations in central Illinois and Chicago. She also has investigated relationships among cognitive function, lifestyle, and exercise after cancer treatment. Through her research, she hopes to increase diversity in dementia-related research and reverse growing disparities in physical activity and dementia-related diseases, with the ultimate goal of creating culturally appropriate physical activity interventions for racially and ethnically diverse older adults with cognitive impairment and dementia-related diseases.
Job Titles:
- Associate Dean for Administration
Job Titles:
- Teaching Assistant Professor
Job Titles:
- Graduate Student Services Advisor
Job Titles:
- Academic Affairs Records Officer
- Affairs Records Officer
Job Titles:
- Associate Professor / Director of Undergraduate Studies
Job Titles:
- Assistant Director of Communications
Job Titles:
- Assistant Director Strategic Initiatives and Research Relations
Job Titles:
- Director of Health Technology Education Program
- Shahid and Ann Carlson Khan Professor
Job Titles:
- Teaching Assistant Professor
Job Titles:
- Interim Department Head
- Professor
Job Titles:
- Professor Emeritus of Recreation, Sport and Tourism