Faculty & Staff Story
Dr. Ryan R. Fairall
Dr. Ryan R. Fairall
The Place for Me
Hometown: Hellertown, PA
Where You Currently Reside: Salisbury, NC during the school semesters and Jacksonville, FL during the winter and summer breaks
Year of Hire: Fall 2022
Favorite Places: By far, The Smoke Pit!
Hobbies & Interests: I enjoy being physically active playing sports, lifting weights, kayaking, fishing, going on walks with my female Shih Tzu named Bledsoe, and watching my hometown Philadelphia sports teams, which can be very frustrating at times.
From the moment I stepped onto Catawba College’s campus the day of my interview and practice teaching session, I knew this was the place for me.”
Dr. Ryan Fairall is an Assistant Professor of Exercise Science. He has worked in health/fitness and sports since 2000, has been a certified personal trainer since 2003, and has been an instructor in higher education since 2015.
When asked what made him choose Catawba, Ryan said, “I’ve lived in a few cities in my life, including New York City for over 12 years, but I come from a small town outside Philadelphia, similar to Salisbury. So, I felt very at home in Salisbury from the moment I moved here. I also loved Catawba’s campus, the lower student-to-faculty ratio, and meeting all of my future colleagues in the Health Sciences & Human Performance Department. Everyone here at Catawba College has been extremely helpful and welcoming, and I’ve loved working with my Exercise Science colleagues and our great students over my first two semesters with Catawba College.”
When asked what he thought to be one of his greatest achievements at Catawba, he said, “I believe my greatest achievement thus far has been implementing the Exercise is Medicine® On Campus (EIM-OC) program. EIM-OC is an initiative created by the American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM) with the goal of promoting physical activity as a vital sign of health among students, faculty, and staff on college and university campuses.”
“Our EIM-OC Leadership Team has completed quite a few EIM-OC events since becoming a registered EIM-OC campus in the fall of 2022,” Ryan continued. “We have also received Silver Status for 2023 for the events we have held on campus and will be recognized at ACSM’s Annual Meeting in Denver, Colorado in May of 2023.”
“I’d like to take this time to thank Ms. Emily Schneider, Catawba College’s Director of Wellness and Intramural Sports, for all of her assistance and support of the EIM-OC program,” added Ryan.