Researcher Biographies
Principal Investigators
Katie M. Heinrich, PhD - Kansas State University (KSU)
Katie M. Heinrich is an Associate Professor of Exercise Behavioral Science in the Department of Kinesiology at Kansas State University. Dr. Heinrich's research focuses on high-intensity functional training (HIFT) group-based exercise, physical activity policy, and obesity prevention. She has recently published on HIFT, policy, and obesity in the Military Medicine, European Journal of Cancer Care, Journal of Physical Activity and Health, Preventing Chronic Disease, American Journal of Health Promotion, BMC Public Health, American Journal of Health Behavior, and Journal of Public Health Management and Practice. Dr. Heinrich has education and training in sports science, obesity epidemiology, and health psychology. Besides serving as the principal investigator for ATHIS, she has served as PI or Co-PI for funded intervention, evaluation and observational studies. She has served as a peer-reviewer for over 30 health-related journals and as a grant reviewer for NIH, FEMA, DoD, and various foundations.
Contact Dr. Heinrich at 785-532-7771 or kmhphd@ksu.edu
Walker S. Carlos Poston, PhD, MPH - National Development and Research Institutes (NDRI)
Walker S. Carlos Poston is a Senior Principal Investigator and serves as Deputy Director for the Institute for Biobehavioral Health Research at NDRI. He has graduate degrees in the behavioral sciences (University of California, Santa Barbara) and in community health and epidemiology (University of Texas Houston Health Science Center, School of Public Health). Dr. Poston completed postdoctoral fellowships in Behavioral Health Psychology (Wilford Hall Medical Center) and in Cardiovascular Health (American Hospital Association Health Forum). His research focuses primarily in the areas of obesity, tobacco control, and cardiovascular disease prevention with an emphasis on minority populations and military and first-responder health. He has been a principal investigator or co-investigator on grants from the American Heart Association (AHA), the American Legacy Foundation, the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, the National Institute of Digestive Disorders and Kidney Diseases, the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, the Department of Defense US Army Medical Research and Material Command, and the Department of Homeland Security/FEMA. He also has been the recipient of a Minority Scientist Development award from AHA.
Contact Dr. Poston at 913-681-0317or carlosposton@hopehri.com
Co-Investigators
Craig A. Harms, PhD - Kansas State University
Craig A. Harms is Professor and Department Head of Kinesiology at Kansas State University. He has graduate degrees from Colorado State University (MS in Exercise Physiology) and Indiana University (PhD in Exercise Physiology). Dr. Harms completed his postdoctoral fellowship in Cardiopulmonary Physiology at the University of Wisconsin Medical School. His research primarily focuses on cardiopulmonary responses, interaction and limitations to exercise across the lifespan, factors affecting oxygen transport during exercise and physical training, physiological sex differences, and human stress physiology. Dr. Harms also serves as Vice President for the American College of Sports Medicine, is Associate Editor in Chief of Medicine and Science in Sport and Exercise, and serves on several editorial boards.
C. Keith Haddock, PhD - NDRI
Christopher Keith Haddock, PhD, PStat®, is Senior Principal Investigator and Director of the Institute for Biobehavioral Health Research at NDRI. He completed the Statistics and Research Design and Behavioral Medicine doctoral programs at the University of Memphis. He also completed postdoctoral fellowships in Health Psychology with the US Air Force (USAF) and in Cardiovascular Disease with the American Hospital Association’s Health Forum. Dr. Haddock is a military veteran, having served both on activity duty and active reserve of the USAF. He has published over 160 scientific papers, addressing tobacco control, obesity, fitness and work capacity, and cardiovascular disease and has received research funding from the National Institutes of Health (NIH), DoD, Department of Homeland Security, American Heart Association, and American Legacy Foundation as a Principal or Co-Investigator.
Sara A. Jahnke, PhD - NDRI
Sara Jahnke a Principal Investigator in The Institute for Biobehavioral Health Research and Director of the Center for Fire, Rescue & EMS Research at NDRI. She completed her doctorate in Counseling Psychology with a Health Emphasis at the University of Missouri – Kansas City and the American Heart Associations’ Fellowship on the Epidemiology and Prevention of Cardiovascular Disease. Dr. Jahnke served as the Principal Investigator of two large-scale studies of the health and readiness of the U.S. Fire Service and has published research on health behaviors of military personnel. She currently serves as the Principal Investigator of a study focused on the health of women firefighters funded by the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute.
More information about the Functional Intensity Training (FIT) Lab, including other projects we are working on and the students working in the lab, can be found here.