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Success of Department of Exercise Science linked to the overall success of Arnold School of Public Health

October 27 2010

Twenty years ago, the idea of linking a department of exercise science with a School of Public Health was unheard of.

“Universities had schools of public health, and they had departments of physical education, usually linked with schools of education,” said Dr. Larry Durstine, who has been chair of the Deparment of Exercise Science for 11 years. “But we all know that we do things a little differently here in South Carolina.”

Durstine’s remarks came during the 35th Anniversary Luncheon for the Arnold School of Public Health.

“As scientists studying physical activity and exercise, we saw the increasing rates of chronic diseases such as heart disease, diabetes, obesity, and hypertension. These diseases were affecting not only the health of adults but our children. And, as scientists, we wanted to know why,” he said.

About the same time, the University was making changes in the way the College of Health was viewed.

“The decision was made to link the new School of Public Health with a new Department of Exercise Science,” he said.

The new department had six faculty members – five of whom remain at the Arnold School. In addition to Durstine, the original faculty include Drs. Harriet Williams, Bruce McClenaghan, Russ Pate and Mark Davis. Dr. Dianne Ward is now on the faculty at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill.

The department had 70 undergraduate students and 40 graduate students and limited resources.

“But very early in the development of the Department of Exercise Science, financial assistance was provided by the late USC Board of Trustees member, Michael J. Mungo, in getting exercise science programming off the ground,” said Durstine, a past president of the American College of Sports Medicine. “It was a visionary move.”

USC’s School of Public Health, now the Arnold School of Public Health, became the first in the nation to have a department of Exercise Science that would study the link between physical activity, exercise and health – a link now proven to be critical to public health, he said.

Since then, the department’s faculty have increased to about 30, and most are nationally and internationally recognized for their research. The faculty serve on federal panels studying the amount of activity needed to promote health and prevent disease among children and adults, have contributed to the guidelines for the new Food Pyramid, testify before Congress on issues related to physical activity in schools, have established the foundation for physical activity studies and exercise programs throughout the world, and are advocates for disease prevention.

“We strive to understand and overcome barriers for becoming physical activity, and we serve the people of our state and nation through outreach programs that impact the health and well-being of all men, women, and children,” Durstine said. “And none of this would be possible without our outstanding staff and students.”

Among the department’s highlights on its 20th anniversary:

• Exercise Science has a record enrollment of nearly 1,000 graduate and undergraduate students.
• The department has outstanding academic and research programming known throughout the university and the United States.
• The Physical Therapy Program is recognized for its students’ clinical expertise and their ability to conduct clinically based research. In keeping with the research focus of the department, increasing numbers of the department’s DPT graduates continue their education to obtain doctoral degrees and become leading physical therapy scientists.
• Dr. Steve Blair, a past president of the American College of Sports Medicine, was recently named the recipient of the Folksam Prize in Epidemiological Research. He will receive the award at an installation ceremony at the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm, Sweden, on Nov. 3.
• Dr. Russ Pate, another past president of the American College of Sports Medicine, led the creation of the National Physical Activity Plan announced in May in Washington, D.C.
• Over the past two years, the faculty has received nearly $10 million in research support. The department is involved in the development of two Centers of Economic Excellence.
• The Perceptual Motor Development Laboratory, established in 1981 by Williams, provides special opportunities to design and implement the needed experiences for promoting optimum development of skills and behaviors.
• The GoodBodies program, formed 30 years ago, is recognized throughout the Midlands for helping children and adolescents develop healthy food and fitness lifestyles. The program recently received an award from the National Institutes of Health.