Rate My Professor Karen Perell-Gerson

Dr. Karen Perell-Gerson is a Professor of Exercise Science and Quality Enhancement Plan Director at Georgia Gwinnett College in the School of Science and Technology, Exercise Science and Physical Education department. She holds a doctorate in kinesiology from the University of California, Los Angeles and is a registered kinesiotherapist. Prior to her appointment at Georgia Gwinnett College, she taught in the Kinesiology and Health Science departments at California State University, Fullerton, the Physiological Science department at UCLA, and the Physical Therapy department at Mount St. Mary's College. She directed the Los Angeles VA Gait Laboratory and implemented fall prevention screening clinics in five Veterans Affairs Centers. Dr. Perell-Gerson emphasizes applied learning, active student participation, and undergraduate research involvement, with her supervised students publishing in professional journals. She is a Top Claw Recipient at Georgia Gwinnett College.

Dr. Perell-Gerson's research focuses on biomechanics to evaluate and treat abnormal movement patterns in individuals with chronic diseases and pathologies, including diabetes, osteoarthritis, and frailty in the elderly. Her recent work examines motivators and barriers to exercise for diabetes risk reduction in minority populations. She received two Career Development Awards from the VA Rehabilitation Research & Development Office to investigate bicycle use for gait deficits in diabetes patients. Other honors include the DHHS-HACU Professions Capacity Building Program Fellowship, VA Desert Pacific Healthcare Network Performance Award, Ralph Goldman Research Award, and Posture & Gait Society Meeting Student Fellowship. She has published in the Journal of Rehabilitation Research & Development, Gait & Posture, Journal of Applied Biomechanics, Clinical Biomechanics, Journal of Gerontology, Clinical Kinesiology, and Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation. Key publications include "Laterally Wedged Shoe Inserts as An Intervention for Medial Knee Osteoarthritis" (2023), "Effects of Contralateral Versus Ipsilateral Cane Use on Gait in People with Knee Osteoarthritis" (2014), "Measurement of Motion Between the Residual Limb and the Prosthetic Socket During Cycling" (2012), and "Motor Learning of a Gait Pattern to Reduce Forefoot Plantar Pressures in Individuals with Diabetic Peripheral Neuropathy" (2009). Her scholarship has accumulated over 1,400 citations.