Debbie I. Craig, PhD, AT-R
123 Women's Building
160 SW 26th St
Corvallis, OR 97331
United States
Academic interests
Dean Craig's expertise ranges from full-time clinical work in Athletic Departments at NCAA division I institutions, to teaching sports medicine topics in the classroom and at conferences, to performing and disseminating research through numerous presentations and publications.
Her research focuses on sport concussions, medial tibial stress syndrome, and various knee injuries. She was the principal investigator for the NCAA and US Dept of Defense Mind Matters grant program, where her group was one of 8 selected nationally to perform sport and/or military concussion research, which contributed ground-breaking research for the concussion health care community. The community-based participatory research approach delivered a wealth of new data to help inform concussion reporting in athletics.
Biography
Dean Debbie Craig received her bachelor’s degree in physical education with an emphasis in athletic training from California State University, Chico, and she pursued a master’s degree in athletic training from the University of Arizona under the mentorship of Hall of Famer Dr. Gary Delforge.
Through the next decade, Debbie worked as a clinical athletic trainer at the NCAA collegiate division 1 level, at the community college level for one year, and at a high school level for two years. A majority of that time was spent at Santa Clara University. She then decided to pursue a PhD so that she could work in one of the newly forming athletic training education programs across the country.
She graduated from Colorado State University, Fort Collins with her PhD in higher education leadership and began her tenure at Northern Arizona University (NAU), where she stayed for nearly 20 years. Beginning as an assistant professor of athletic training and clinical coordinator, she then moved to a program director position within the first year, including successfully taking the program through its initial accreditation. Her research during this time focused primarily on three areas – the brain physiology of how we learn, knee injuries and concussion research. She also published two textbooks, one with three editions, and transitioned the bachelor’s program in athletic training into a master’s program offered at two distant sites.
She ended her time at NAU as the associate dean for the College of Health and Human Services, prior to accepting the dean position at the University of Alaska Anchorage (UAA). UAA College of Health is the largest college in the state, with over 50 degree programs, 3,000+ students and programs in every corner of the state. She served three years at UAA before transitioning to Oregon State University’s College of Health on July 1, 2025.
Drawn to Oregon State for its location and land grant status, Debbie is working to maintain the high quality of teaching, research and service that the College of Health historically has delivered. She looks forward to helping move the college forward to new heights in the coming years.