Brown Athletics and Recreation Announces Wellness and Performance Ecosystem
2/21/2023 9:57:00 AM | General, Wellness & Performance
PROVIDENCE, R.I. – Assistant Vice President for Athletics and Recreation/Governance and Performance Shoshanna Engel Lewis announced the hiring of Joe Walsmith '94, Ph.D., Senior Associate Director of Athletics, Wellness and Performance, Matt Whalen, MS, LAT, ATC, Associate Director of Athletics, Sports Medicine and Emilie Burgess, MS, RDN, CSSD, LDN, Dietitian/Nutritionist. Walsmith, Whalen and Burgess join Director of Strength and Conditioning Brandon O'Neall as leaders within the Division of Athletics and Recreation wellness and performance ecosystem, which includes Sports Psychology, Sports Nutrition, Sports Medicine, Strength and Conditioning and Sports Wellness. Creating a holistic and interdisciplinary model, the ecosystem provides a wraparound approach to maximize performance, care, programming and support.
"I am ecstatic to welcome three strong leaders in Joe, Emilie, and Matt. Together with Brandon O'Neall and the respective units they lead, this team will be instrumental in creating an innovative and interdisciplinary approach to performance and holistic care. Under Joe's leadership, Brown's holistic approach will benefit our student-athletes and differentiate our programs."
JOE WALSMITH '94, Ph.D.
Joe Walsmith '94, Ph.D. will oversee and help further develop Brown's wellness & performance team and ecosystem, which will include sports nutrition, sports medicine, strength & conditioning, and sports psychology.
Walsmith brings a holistic approach to student-athlete wellness and performance. He is trained in physiology, nutrition, immunology, biology, mind-body health, lifestyle medicine, exercise science, human performance, and health behavior change. He holds a doctoral degree in nutritional biochemistry, physiology, and metabolism from Tufts University, a bachelor's and master's degree in biology from Brown University and Harvard University, and training and certification in health & well-being coaching and mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR) from Duke Integrative Medicine. In addition, he is a National Board Certified Health & Wellness Coach, and he completed stress management & resiliency training at the Benson-Henry Institute for Mind Body Medicine at Massachusetts General Hospital.
Walsmith has more than 20 years of experience working in the health & life sciences industry in various executive leadership and strategy roles, including positions at AstraZeneca Pharmaceuticals and the Global Life Sciences Practice of L.E.K. Consulting, a leading global management consulting firm. Prior to this, he conducted medical research on inflammation, autoimmune disease, nutrition, metabolism, exercise, and aging at the Human Nutrition Research Center on Aging at Tufts University, and he completed his post-doctoral training in the life sciences at Harvard University's Office of Technology Development.
Walsmith is a former four-year varsity member and senior co-captain of the Brown Men's Soccer Program, and he is a former elite age-group triathlete, USA Triathlon All-American, and Hawaii Ironman World Championship finisher with a love for the outdoors and active lifestyle. He has a passion for the science and practice of health, well-being, and optimal performance, and he looks forward to helping Brown student-athletes realize their full potential on and off the field.
"Brown is a special place and I couldn't be more excited to return to Brown in this new role – a role that is focused on making a positive impact on the lives of Brown's student-athletes," said Walsmith. "I look forward to the work ahead and to building something great together! It is a fantastic time to be part of Brown Athletics and Recreation."
MATT WHALEN, MS, LAT, ATC
Matt Whalen will oversee the sports medicine unit and joins Brown after three years as Tufts Director of Sports Medicine/Head Athletic Trainer. Whalen oversaw and provided comprehensive athletic healthcare for 28 Division III athletic programs and two club contact sports.
No stranger to the Ivy League, Whalen spent nine years (2010-19) in the sports medicine department at Harvard - six as an athletic trainer and three as the Associate Director of Sports Medicine.
Prior to Harvard, Whalen was an assistant athletic trainer at Babson (2005-10) and an athletic trainer at Boston College (2004-05).
Whalen earned a master's in health promotion and exercise science from California University of Pennsylvania in 2007. He received a bachelor's degree in physical education, with a concentration in athletic training, from Bridgewater State College in 2004.
"I am grateful for the opportunity to join the Brown University Athletic Department at such an exciting time," said Whalen. "I look forward to working with the student-athletes, coaches, administrators and clinicians as we strive to set a new standard in sports performance and wellness."
EMILIE BURGESS, MS, RDN, CSSD, LDN
Emilie Burgess completed her Bachelor's degree in Dietetics at the University of Connecticut, where she competed as a Division I tennis player. She went on to obtain her Master of Science in Nutrition and Food Science and completed a dietetic internship at West Virginia University. She is also a Board Certified Sports Dietitian (CSSD) specializing in sports performance nutrition and eating disorders in athletes.
Burgess began her dietetic career as a Clinical Dietitian at St. Elizabeth's Medical Center in Boston. Then she accepted a position at the Cambridge Eating Disorder Center (CEDC) as a Registered Dietitian.
Burgess has worked at Home Base, a Boston Red Sox Foundation and the Massachusetts General Hospital program, where she provided nutrition support to veterans and their families. She supported Home Base's tactile athletes competing in events such as the Boston Marathon and the Marathon Des Sables.
Burgess has also spent time as a Clinical Nutrition Specialist in the Division of Sports Medicine and Female Athlete Program at Boston Children's Hospital and as a Registered Dietitian at MIT Recreation. Along with her inpatient, collegiate, outpatient, and eating disorder experience, Emilie has volunteered for two U.S. Division I sports nutrition programs.
She recently completed a sports nutrition fellowship at the University of Washington through the Gatorade Sports Nutrition Immersion Program (SNIP) in Seattle, WA. Emilie currently serves as the sports dietitian for Brown University Athletics and is a Registered Dietitian at Laura Moretti Nutrition LLC.
"I am excited and honored to be the first full-time Sports Dietitian hired to support Brown Athletics," said Burgess. "I am looking forward to hitting the ground running, building a fueling program that supports student-athletes during their athletic career and for life after sport."
BROWN UNIVERSITY SPORTS FOUNDATION
The Brown University Sports Foundation (BUSF) is the lifeblood of the athletics program, and exists to enhance the student-athlete experience through philanthropic support from alumni, parents, fans and friends. A gift through the Sports Foundation makes an immediate impact on today's Brown Bears and helps them to be their best in the classroom, in competition and most notably in the community. To learn more about supporting the Bears, please click here.
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