10:41 a.m., April 23, 2010----Irene Davis, professor of physical therapy at the University of Delaware, has been elected a Catherine Worthingham Fellow of the American Physical Therapy Association (APTA).

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The highest honor among the APTA's membership categories, this designation recognizes individuals “whose work has resulted in lasting and significant advances in the science, education, and practice of the profession of physical therapy.” Catherine Worthingham was a leader in physical therapy education, science, and practice for more than 50 years.

Criteria for selection include demonstrated excellence in advocacy, education, practice, or research; national recognition by APTA members and leaders outside the physical therapy profession; and frequent and sustained contributions over a period of at least 15 years.

The APTA cited Davis as an internationally recognized expert on lower extremity biomechanics and injury and a pioneer in developing conservative treatments for runners' injuries as an instructor, a clinician, and a researcher. The citation also refers to her frequent and sustained research contributions to the profession's understanding of the relationship between lower extremity mechanics and injury.

Davis is credited with acquiring nearly $3.5 million in grants to support and sustain these studies, authoring papers that have been cited more than 1,000 times in peer-reviewed journals, and giving nearly 300 national and international scientific presentations.

In addition to her peer-reviewed publications, Davis has contributed to the education of the public through her work being featured on ABC World News Tonight, and in The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, Parade, and Time.

Head of the University of Delaware Running Research Laboratory, Davis also has a faculty appointment in UD's BIOMS (Biomechanics and Movement Science) graduate program.

A graduate of the University of Massachusetts in exercise science, Davis earned a second degree, in physical therapy, from the University of Florida. She then went on to complete a master's degree at the University of Virginia and a doctorate at Pennsylvania State University, both in biomechanics. Davis joined the UD faculty in 1989.

Two other UD faculty members -- Stuart Binder-Macleod and Lynn Snyder-Mackler -- were elected Catherine Worthingham Fellows in 2003.

Article by Diane Kukich