By Jill Pease
David Fuller, Ph.D., has been named the University of Florida College of Public Health and Health Professions’ associate dean for research. He begins in his new role August 1.
A member of the college’s department of physical therapy faculty since 2004, Fuller is internationally recognized for his studies developing new treatments for diseases that impair the ability to breathe. As part of that work, he also focuses on understanding how the brain and spinal cord control the respiratory muscles. His research has been continuously funded since 2003 and he currently serves as the principal investigator on two National Institutes of Health-funded grants focused on rehabilitation after spinal cord injury and developing gene therapy approaches for Pompe disease.
Earlier this year, Fuller was recognized as one of UF’s most productive and promising researchers named to the 2024 cohort of UF Research Foundation Professors.
“I am delighted that Dr. Fuller has accepted the role of associate dean for research and I look forward to seeing the results of his energy and commitment to the college applied to our research mission,” said Beth A. Virnig, Ph.D., M.P.H., dean of the College of Public Health and Health Professions.
Over the last three decades, Fuller has published more than 150 manuscripts in major, peer-reviewed scientific journals and earned an H-index of 55 and an i10-index of 130 with nearly 9,500 citations of his work. In addition, he holds two patents.
He is the associate director of the UF Breathing Research and Therapeutics, or BREATHE, Center, a research and training hub dedicated to understanding physiological challenges to respiratory motor control in health and disease and to translating that knowledge into strategies of respiratory rehabilitation in devastating clinical disorders that compromise breathing.
As associate dean for research, Fuller will focus on developing group and individual activities that promote the college’s research mission, in particular, supporting the research efforts of assistant professors and more senior faculty. He will manage college resources, such as the PHHP Research Innovation Fund and PHHP Grant Feedback Portal, and lead the college’s successful PHHP Days, a two-day showcase of college research.
“I am honored to accept the position of associate dean for research, and excited to get to work,” Fuller said. “Our college faculty are conducting transformational research and making groundbreaking discoveries. In my role, I will help to sustain and grow our research enterprise as we develop solutions to local, national and global health challenges. My vision is that college faculty, staff, students and postdoctoral fellows feel supported and valued, and work together to enable success in the complex process of conducting high level scientific studies in the academic setting. While challenges will always be present, we will meet them together through open communication, mutual respect and collaboration.”