By Amanda Mlekush
Dr. Gavin Colquitt, a researcher specializing in disability health and movement disorders such as cerebral palsy, is the new executive director of Appalachian State University’s Blue Cross NC Institute for Health and Human Services (IHHS), and joins the university as a professor in the Beaver College of Health Sciences’ Department of Recreation Management and Physical Education, effective July 3.
Dr. Gavin Colquitt (right) talks with Bryan Belcher, director of the Blue Cross NC Institute for Health and Human Services' Interprofessional Clinic.
Colquitt comes to App State from Georgia Southern University in Statesboro where he founded and worked as the executive director for the university’s Center for Rehabilitation and Independent Living, a research center that also engages communities by promoting independence and quality of life for children, adults and older adults with disabilities and chronic conditions. With locations in the coastal region of Georgia including Savannah, Statesboro and Hinesville, the center offers the expertise of affiliated faculty and undergraduate and graduate students to community stakeholders. Colquitt also served as a professor in the Department of Health Sciences and Kinesiology.
“I’m looking forward to getting to know the staff, faculty and students from Appalachian’s Institute for Health and Human Services and interacting with the broader community we serve,” said Colquitt. “IHHS offers an expansive scope of services beginning with health and wellness initiatives to caring for those who need clinically based care and/or therapy. I look forward to working with my colleagues to elevate the impactful work the institute is having on individuals, families and the region.”
IHHS is organized into four separate divisions led by directors and has 53 affiliated faculty and staff conducting health and wellness related research.
The four divisions are:
Education and Outreach (which includes Girls on the Run, the Aging Academy and the HUB for Autism and Neurodiversity)
Clinical Services (which includes Interprofessional Clinics with locations in Boone in Levine Hall and University Hall; a new interprofessional clinic is being established at App State Hickory) as well as clinical services being delivered to convenient community-based locations
Colquitt is pictured inside the Blue Cross NC Institute for Health and Human Services' Interprofessional Clinic in Levine Hall.
Colquitt will work closely with Beaver College of Health Sciences Associate Dean Dr. Gary McCullough, who served as IHHS’ executive director for most of the past decade.
“With his wealth of experience in community outreach and research, Gavin will be a great asset,” said McCullough. “The institute has successfully expanded its programs to serve older adults throughout the region, and I think Gavin’s experience will help us expand our ability to support more children with special needs and disabilities. We are excited to have him.”
Colquitt received a doctorate in Education from North Central University in Prescott Valley, Arizona, a master’s in Education with a concentration in Health and Physical Education from Georgia State University in Atlanta and a bachelor’s degree from Georgia State in Science with a concentration in Health and Physical Education.
About IHHS
The Blue Cross North Carolina Institute for Health and Human Services (IHHS) provides multidisciplinary research opportunities, clinical services, community outreach, and training programs related to holistic health and well-being with the overarching goal of improving lives through transformative social, environmental, and healthcare advances. IHHS aspires to take education and research beyond the walls of academia by engaging the very people it serves in the process of training future providers, building research relevant to rural health, and creating a sustainable culture of health through regional community partnerships in education and preventive services.
About the Beaver College of Health Sciences
Appalachian State University’s Beaver College of Health Sciences (BCHS), opened in 2010, is transforming the health and quality of life for the communities it serves through interprofessional collaboration and innovation in teaching, scholarship, service and clinical outreach. BCHS offers nine undergraduate degree programs and seven graduate degree programs, which are organized into six departments: Nursing, Nutrition and Health Care Management, Public Health and Exercise Science, Recreation Management and Physical Education, Rehabilitation Sciences and Social Work. The college’s academic programs are located in Boone at the Holmes Convocation Center on App State’s main campus and the Leon Levine Hall of Health Sciences, a state-of-the-art, 203,000-square-foot facility that is the cornerstone of the Wellness District. In addition, the college supports the Blue Cross NC Institute for Health and Human Services and has collaborative partnerships with the Wake Forest School of Medicine’s Physician Assistant Program, the Appalachian Regional Health System and numerous other health agencies. Learn more at https://healthsciences.appstate.edu
Dr. Gavin Colquitt
Photo of man with blonde hair wearing a navy jacket in the lobby of Levine Hall