Health Beat
April 2025
College of Health newsletter
All the news that's fit to print
We encourage you to scroll through the whole page, but if you want to skip ahead to a particular section, select from the following.
Visibility
News and stories
These stories are predominately made up from the college's alumni magazine, press releases from OSU News and Research Communications, and media mentions.
The Moore Family Center kicks off career Q&A pilot event with leading discovery scientist
The Moore Family Center is launching a new Mentorship Program with a career Q&A featuring Dr. Matt Kuchan, a discovery scientist from Abbott Laboratories, who will serve as one of the program's first mentors for nutrition students during the 2025-26 academic year.
Improving human donor milk for pre-term infants
Ningjian Liang, working with the Moore Family Center and the Dallas Lab, has published promising research on alternative pasteurization methods that preserve beneficial bioactive proteins in human donor milk while ensuring safety for vulnerable premature infants.
Moore Family Center Leads Human Milk Research Initiative with INSC Consortium
Moore Family Center awarded contract to develop scientific papers on human milk composition as part of a groundbreaking tripartite consortium with 20+ industry, government and academic partners.
An interview with the MFC’s student nutrition fellow
Adam Choate, a senior in OSU's nutrition and dietetics program, reflects on his experience as the Moore Family Center's Student Nutrition Fellow, highlighting his work with community outreach programs and the professional growth opportunities that have shaped his career aspirations.
New funds will launch new lecture series and children’s app
The Hallie E. Ford Center at OSU receives new funding to launch a children’s app developed from the “Head-Toes-Knees-Shoulders” measure and an endowed lecture series on brain injury and neurodiversity, supporting families, educators and the community.
Honors student at OSU-Cascades connects public health and communication
OSU-Cascades Honors student Margaret Martin blends public health and communication through honors research and faculty mentorship.
Health leadership in collegiate sports: Insights from the 2025 Bray Health Leadership and Innovation Lecture
Explore key insights on health leadership in collegiate sports from Dr. Kimberly Harmon's 2025 Bray Lecture. Learn about athlete well-being, gender equality in sports medicine and the future of college athletics.
New College of Health dean announced
Debbie I. Craig, PhD, ATC will serve as Oregon State University’s new dean of the College of Health effective July 1.
Students
Internship spotlights
See how COH students are applying classroom knowledge, building professional networks, and testing out fulfilling careers in health and well-being.
Meet all the internship spotlight students.
Kinesiology - Pre-therapy and allied health, BS
OSU Cadaver Lab, Cordley Hall
OSU kinesiology student Abigail Roth gains hands-on experience and builds communication skills as she works toward a career in athletic training and rodeo sports.
Good News!
Good News
Our faculty, staff and students do amazing things!
They receive national, university and college honors; publish books and articles; serve on editorial boards and much more.
Did you or someone you know do something we should share? Let us know by submitting some Good News.
Professor completes marathon in Track Town USA
Associate Professor Jonathan Garcia finished the Eugene Marathon on Sunday, April 28. Congrats, Jonathan! We were all cheering you on!
Professor Joins Call for Continued Federal Investment in Physical Activity Science
Professor Brad Cardinal contributed to a commentary/viewpoint jointly issued by the National Academy of Kinesiology and the American Kinesiology Association. The brief three-page article highlights five areas in which the science of physical activity and exercise is clear, and it urges continued federal support.
Professor quoted in the New York Times on NIH budget cuts
Professor Perry Hystad was quoted in the New York Times on NIH budget cuts to climate change research.
YouthMappers honored with Women's Participation Award
Members were recognized “for committing to carry out a vision of an inclusive mapping community and engaging a majority of female student mappers, through membership and leadership, in their YouthMappers chapter.”
Brad Cardinal earns top scholar ranking
Kinesiology professor Brad Cardinal has been named to the ScholarGPS 2024 Highly Ranked Scholars™ list for his extensive publications, the significant impact of his research, and the high quality of his scholarly work. In the field of physical activity, he ranks among the top 0.05% of scholars globally. Congrats, Brad!
Kinesiology PhD student crushes Boston Marathon
Congratulations to kinesiology doctoral student Reegan Von Wildenradt on completing the Boston Marathon in a remarkable time of 3:22:19. We were all rooting for you, Reegan!
Postdoc receives university award
Franziska Loetzner received an Oregon State Postdoctoral Development Award for the winter term. The award recognizes university postdocs who demonstrate a commitment to advancing their professional development. Nicely done, Franziska!
2PLAY Lab hosts regional sport psychology conference
The 2PLAY lab partnered with the Hallie E. Ford Center to host the 2025 Pacific Northwest Regional Sport Psychology Conference on April 25-26. More than 40 attendees from over 10 universities visited campus for the weekend event.
Undergraduates attend ACSM Northwest Annual Meeting
A group of undergraduate students attended the 2025 American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM) Northwest Annual Meeting in Cheney, Washington, thanks to the initiative and organization of Senior Instructor Jay Penry.
Professor recieves YouthMappers Mentoring Award
Professor Sunil Khanna received the James Kweku Eshun Mentoring Award by YouthMappers for providing the highest level of support to YouthMappers chapters, facilitating learning opportunities, and going above and beyond his duty to advise and mentor.
PAC named top training provider
The College of Health's Physical Activity Course (PAC) Program has been recognized as a Top Training Provider by the American Red Cross for the second consecutive year. Congratulations, PAC!
Research
Publications
Check out the recent publications from researchers across the college over the past month. See if you can guess the researcher(s) based solely on publication titles:
This study investigated the impact of daily almond consumption on adults with metabolic syndrome. Researchers focused on the effects of almonds as a snack on various health indicators, specifically noting beneficial changes in total and LDL cholesterol levels, along with improvements in certain markers of intestinal inflammation.
Do official campus crime reports actually reflect what's really happening with sexual assault and drinking problems on college campuses?
Why do people in different parts of the world have such different risks of getting heart disease, and what can we do about it? Instead of just telling individuals to "eat better and exercise more," this research examines how to create environments where healthier choices are easier for everyone, regardless of where they live or how much money they have.
This research tested the Push-Pull-Infrastructure (PPI) model for disseminating oral HIV self-testing (OHST) among men who have sex with men in Portland, OR, and found it to be highly successful.
Does maintaining outdoor recreation during a crisis like the pandemic helped protect mental health, and do certain groups of people face more barriers to accessing these potential benefits than others?
This study assesses the impact of Kenya’s 2010 abortion law liberalization on modern contraceptive use and number of recent births (births in the past 5 years ) among women of reproductive age in Kenya.
How do in-home environmental exposures, like cockroaches and rodents, affect lung function in children with asthma?
Does having more visible nature, like trees and grass, around your home, as seen from street level, affect your risk of becoming depressed?
Strong family-teacher relationships in early childhood education (ECE) benefit both children and families. Children with better family-teacher relationships show improved school readiness and social-emotional development. This research can guide ECE programs in creating policies that are more responsive to families' needs and strengthen these critical partnerships.
Healthy Discoveries
The Healthy Discoveries program gives undergraduates the support they need to start conducting research projects early in their college careers. This valuable program is made possible thanks to the generous support of the Patricia Valian Reser Fund for Experiential Learning. Let's meet some of our 2025 undergraduate student researchers! We'll be highlighting a few of them each month.
Emma Ryan
Emma Ryan, a kinesiology student specializing in pre-therapy and allied health, discusses her research on ankle stability biomechanics and her aspirations to become a sports medicine physician.
Maxwell Schwarzmann
Maxwell Schwarzmann, a kinesiology undergraduate, discusses his research on Special Olympics basketball athletes' training methods and his entrepreneurial goals in the physical and mental wellness space.
Christina Young-Valdovinos
Public health undergraduate Christina Young-Valdovinos discusses her research on Latinx food security in Linn-Benton communities and her goal to become a pediatrician after completing her studies.
Research seminars
Be sure to watch the 2025 Bray Lecture featuring Kimberly Harmon, MD, a pioneering force in sports medicine.
And be sure to catch the last few seminars of spring term. We encourage you to attend live sessions whenever possible.
Leadership Lessons from Medicine and Sport: Breaking Barriers, Building Futures
Tuesday, April 8
Kimberly G. Harmon, MD, professor in the departments of Family Medicine and Orthopaedics and Sports Medicine at the University of Washington.
Consequences of ending federal protections for abortion in the United States: Lessons from the Turnaway Study
Friday, May 9
Professor Diana Greene Foster, University of California, San Francisco.
Co-sponsored by the COH Center for Global Health.
Graduate Research Symposium
Friday, May 16
College of Health graduate students will present their research accomplishments and scientific discoveries.
Staying the Course from Evidence to Clinical Practice:
Past and Future Challenges in Breast Cancer Preventive Screening Guidelines
Friday, May 23
Jillian Henderson, Kaiser-Permanente Center for Health Research.
Building the COH Signature Research Areas
Friday, May 30
The steering committee for COH signature research areas will present. Speakers include Jessica Gorman, Perry Hystad and Andy Pitchford.
Events
Mark your calendars!
June 10 End-of-Year College Breakfast
The End-of-Year College Breakfast will be held from 8-10 a.m. on Tuesday, June 10, in the Women’s Building Gym.
June 13 College of Health’s Graduation Celebrations
The College of Health’s Graduation Celebrations will take place on Friday, June 13 in LINC 100 and via livestream.
Join us in celebrating our graduates from:
- Human Development and Family Sciences at 8 a.m.
- Nutrition at 10 a.m.
- Public Health at 1 p.m.
- Exercise, Sport, and Health Sciences at 3 p.m.
University Commencement will be held on Saturday, June 14.
Bonus!
ASPIRE Children's Environmental Health Center
April is Environmental Education Month!
Oregon Parenting Education Collaborative (OPEC)
OPEC publishes useful information for families, caregivers, and professionals who support children and families.