Team

Professor Philip Morgan

Professor Philip Morgan

Lead Investigator

Lead Investigator Professor Philip Morgan is Deputy Director of the Priority Research Centre for Physical Activity and Nutrition at the University of Newcastle, Australia. His research focuses on the design, evaluation and translation of targeted interventions to promote physical activity and nutrition in men, fathers and children in community, school and workplace settings.

Along with the HYHD program, Professor Morgan has developed and tested a number of award winning community-based health education programs for men including DADEE (Dads And Daughters Exercising and Empowered), Healthy Dads, Healthy Kids , SHED-IT (Self-Help Exercise and Diet using Information Technology) and Workplace POWER (Preventing Obesity Without Eating like a Rabbit). These gender-tailored interventions have been highly successful and are now being rolled out in national and international translation trials. In 2014, Healthy Dads, Healthy Kids won national awards for ‘Excellence in Obesity Prevention’ and ‘Community Engagement’ and Workplace POWER was awarded an ANPHA National Preventive Health Award in 2013.

Professor Morgan has published more than 240 academic papers and served as an invited expert on multiple government and non-government committees focusing on obesity, physical activity and physical education. His contributions to research, teaching and community service have been recognised with over 30 prestigious academic awards including the Scopus Young Researcher of the Year Award for Australasia and the Australian Award for University Teaching Excellence from the National Office for Learning & Teaching.

As a father of three daughters and coach of multiple junior basketball, touch football and soccer teams, Professor Morgan is very aware of the important role fathers play in their children’s lives. He is a strong advocate for enhancing the father-child bond and wellbeing through physical activity and sport.

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Dr Myles Young

Dr Myles Young

Chief Investigator

Dr. Young is a post-doctoral research fellow at the Priority Research Centre in Physical Activity and Nutrition and the School of Education at the University of Newcastle. He was awarded his PhD in 2015, following completion of a Bachelor of Psychology (Hons 1A) at the University of Newcastle in 2009. Dr. Young's research focuses on the development and testing of innovative weight management programs designed specifically for men.

Dr Young is the proud father of two boys - Amos and Owen and enjoys sharing his love of soccer and sock wrestling and teaching them how to develop a lifelong love of physical activity and tasty, healthy food.

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Dr Alyce Barnes

Dr Alyce Barnes

Chief Investigator

Dr. Barnes completed a PhD at the University of Newcastle in 2015, focused on improving the physical activity levels of mothers and their daughters through an after-school program - M.A.D.E. (Mothers And Daughters Exercising) 4 Life.

Prior to her postgraduate studies, Dr. Barnes completed a Bachelor of Teaching/Bachelor of Health & Physical Education at the University of Newcastle (2008) and taught as a Kindergarten - Year 6 Health and Physical Education specialist and in high schools.

Dr. Barnes is a co-investigator on Healthy Youngsters, Healthy Dads and facilitated the program at UON with Prof. Philip Morgan in 2018.

Dr. Barnes is also a co-investigator on the world-first DADEE (Dads And Daughters Exercising and Empowered) program targeting fathers as the agents of change to improve their daughters' physical activity levels, sport skills and social-emotional wellbeing.

Outside of work, Dr Barnes is grateful of the opportunity to take a major role nurturing and empowering her girls, Saylor and Avalon, to an active life of positivity, health and well-being.

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Professor Clare Collins

Professor Clare Collins

Chief Investigator

Professor Clare Collins is a National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) Senior Research Fellow, Professor of Nutrition and Dietetics. She is Director of Research for the School of Health Sciences, Faculty of Health and Medicine and Deputy Director, Priority Research Centre in Physical Activity and Nutrition at the University of Newcastle, NSW, Australia.

In 2017 Professor Collins was awarded the Hunter Medical Research Institute’s researcher of the Year. She leads the largest team of dietitian researchers internationally, in assessing dietary intake and evaluating the impact of food and nutrition on eating patterns and diet-related health across key life stages and chronic disease conditions. Professor Collins is a Fellow of the Dietitians Association of Australian (DAA) and has published over 300 manuscripts and supervised 25 Higher Degree Research candidates to completion. She was a clinical paediatric dietitian at John Hunter Children’s Hospital, NSW for over 20 years. She is passionate about nutrition communication and recently presented Feeding Australia for ABC Catalyst. She is a sought after nutrition media commentator and a regular guest of Dr Karl for TripleJ Science Hour.

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Emma Pollock

Emma Pollock

Chief Investigator

Emma completed her Bachelor of Teaching and Bachelor of Health and Physical Education at the University of Newcastle in 2009 and has taught in both primary and high schools in the Newcastle region.

Since 2012, Emma has been engaged as a project manager on numerous school and community based interventions led by Prof. Morgan and Prof. Lubans, to improve physical activity behaviour in children and adolescents and she commenced her PhD on the Dads And Daughters Exercising and Empowered project in 2017.

Outside of work, Emma is a representative tennis player, experienced and engaging tennis coach, and a role model for positivity and physical activity for those she coaches.

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Kristen Saunders

Kristen Saunders

HYHD Project Team

Kristen has been engaged in Prof. Morgan's team as a Project manager/Senior Research assistant since 2008, working on Healthy Dads, Healthy Kids; SHED-IT and Workplace POWER weight loss programs for men, DADEE and now Healthy Youngsters Healthy Dads. A 'Jill of all trades', Kristen assists with the multitude of tasks behind the scenes which help make Healthy Youngsters such a success.

Outside of work, Kristen loves to run, bike ride and play sports with her family and role model the values of great health and nutrition to her three children, Lucca, Angus and Zara.

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Jackie New

Jackie New

Project Manager

Jackie joined Prof. Morgan’s team as Project Officer for the Healthy Youngsters, Healthy Dads program in August, 2018. She completed her undergraduate degree in Nutrition and Dietetics before going on to obtain her Masters of Public Health through Griffith University.

Jackie has worked as an Accredited Practicing Dietitian in both clinical and community settings, with experience in public health research, early childhood nutrition education and community health promotion. Outside of work, Jackie enjoys visiting local markets, boutique cafes and taking her dog for a run along the beach.

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Stevie-Lee Kennedy

Stevie-Lee Kennedy

HYHD Project Team

Stevie-Lee has been working with the HYHD team since completing her Bachelor of Teaching and Bachelor of Health and Physical Education at the University of Newcastle in 2016. She has also taught in local high schools. 

Stevie-Lee assists behind the scenes on a multitude of tasks to keep the HYHD project running seamlessly. 

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We are looking for dads and their youngsters

Are you a dad who wants to spend quality time with your child participating in fun physical activities, whilst learning how to improve their sport skills, health and wellbeing…along with your own?

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