Harold W. (Bill) Kohl, III, PhD
Professor and Associate Regional Dean for Academic Affairs and International Health Affairs, Epidemiology, Human Genetics & Environmental Sciences
harold.w.kohl@uth.tmc.edu
Dr. Kohl served as the associate regional dean for academic affairs and international health affairs at the UTHealth School of Public Health in Austin. He was also a professor in the Epidemiology, Human Genetics & Environmental Sciences Department for 17 years.
He served as lead epidemiologist and team leader in the Physical Activity and Health Branch of the Division of Nutrition and Physical Activity at the CDC in Atlanta. In 2006, he was tapped to help create the first U.S. Physical Activity Guidelines, which were published in 2008. He worked in the area of physical activity and health, including conducting research, developing and evaluating intervention programs for adults and children, and developing and advising on policy issues for nearly 40 years.
He served as an elected Trustee and was a Fellow of the American College of Sports Medicine and a Fellow in the National Academy of Kinesiology. He was the founder and past-president of the International Society for Physical Activity and Health. He also served in an editorial capacity for several scientific journals and was the Editor Emeritus of the Journal of Physical Activity and Health. He served as Chair of an Institute of Medicine committee at the National Academies of Science on physical activity and physical education in school-based settings, was the Chair of the Science Board of the President’s Council on Physical Fitness, Sports and Nutrition, and also served on the Board of Directors of the US Physical Activity Alliance and Marathon Kids.
Dr. Kohl was a contributor on two articles in the first Lancet Series on physical activity (2012), as well as a third article in The Lancet on annual deaths attributable to physical inactivity (2013). He was also a contributor to the International Journal of Behavioral Nutrition and Physical Activity and the Institute of Medicine (National Academies of Science) reports on physical activity.
In total, he published more than 250 papers, chapters, and monographs in the scientific literature and in 2012, co-authored the textbook Foundations of Physical Activity and Public Health now in its second edition.
Dr. Kohl also led a series of 9 webinars for Active Texas 2030 in 2022. See the webinars below:
- Active Texas 2030: Community Recreation, Fitness, and Parks Sector
- Active Texas 2030: Faith-Based Sector
- Active Texas 2030: Public Health Sector
- Active Texas 2030: Transportation, Land Use, and Community Design Sector
- Active Texas 2030: Business and Industry Sector
- Active Texas 2030: Media and Communications Sector
- Active Texas 2030: Healthcare Sector
- Active Texas 2030: Education Sector
- Active Texas 2030: Military Populations Sector
