Dr. Paul M. Gallo, Class of ’14, has been the director of Exercise Science and Wellness at Norwalk Community College since 2004 and Adjunct Faculty in Biobehavioral Sciences at Teachers College since 2011. Teachers College has afforded Paul with resources and opportunities in research, teaching, curriculum development, and wellness promotion, since completing his Doctorate of Education in 2014.

Paul attributes much of his success to the formal training he received during his studies at Teachers College under the tutelage of his doctoral advisor, Dr. Carol Ewing Garber, Chair of Biobehavioral Sciences. While at Teachers College, Paul was exposed to a number of pedagogical approaches, quality research, and networking opportunities that helped to shape his career today.  Since graduating from the Applied Physiology doctoral program, Paul has achieved fellowship status with the American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM) based on his contributions to the organization, community, and research. Additionally, he is currently the President of the New England Chapter of the American College of Sports Medicine (NEACSM) where he is focusing his efforts to increase the use of technology for a greater reach of services and implementing opportunity for diversity, inclusion, and equity among both professional and student members. Exposure to both the ACSM and NEACSM were a result of faculty at Teachers College encouraging students to attend meetings and present their dissertation research. Because of these positive experiences, Paul currently works to allow for his students to become more engaged in networking, presenting, and attending professional conferences.  

In 2018, Paul worked with the Chinese Association of Sports Medicine through a partnership with the ACSM to develop the first ever, assessment-based curriculum for the Credentialed Personal Trainer. The purpose of this curriculum was to provide a structured course specific to the Chinese fitness industry to prepare individuals for the profession of health-fitness and personal training. Paul’s interest in engaging with this project stemmed largely from the positive experiences he had teaching a diverse population of students at Teachers College as both a teacher’s assistant and instructor. In addition to leading the curriculum development committee, Paul was also fortunate enough to deliver a thirty-six-hour inaugural instructor training in Shanghai, China in March of 2019 along with several other professionals. He was also invited to Taipei, Taiwan in the fall of 2019 to present the Credentialed Personal Trainer Workshop to students interested in obtaining this credential through the Chinese Academy of Sports Medicine.

Currently, Paul sits on the editorial board for the Clinical Exercise Physiology Association’s Journal of Clinical Exercise Physiology, where he is the author of the Research Highlights Column. He is also the editor of the Certification Column for the ACSM’s Health and Fitness Journal. In addition to his editorial work, Paul remains active in research focusing on persons with Parkinson’s Disease and older adults.  He is particularly interested in the effects of resistance training in both populations and the effects it has on movement economy. These research interests are a result of Paul’s dissertation.

Since the fall of 2014, Paul has served as the Executive Director of the Norwalk Community College Wellness Committee, which oversees the implementation of an employee workplace wellness program. This program provides employees and students of the college with physical activity recommendation, nutritional education, and health-behavior modification. Much of the programming involved with this curriculum was supported by course work that Paul completed at Teachers College, including such courses as BBSR 5095 Exercise and Health. Since its inception, the workplace wellness program has received local and national recognition including the Fairfield County Business Council Workplace Recognition Award and the American Heart Association’s Workplace Health Achievement Index. On January 17, 2017 the Norwalk Community College Wellness Program was formally recognized along with thirty-six other institutions at the United States White House in Washington DC.  Paul was among one of the three individuals who attended this recognition.

One of Paul’s greatest passions for working in higher education is teaching. He believes strongly in the engagement of student learning through group, experiential, and case study-based learning. Many of these pedagogical approaches were implemented during his doctoral studies in Applied Physiology, which Paul now uses to help his students reach their academic and career goals.  Paul takes great pride in teaching at both Norwalk Community College and Teachers College to help develop the future of the exercise physiology and associated disciplines of study.