EPARC comprises a team of interdisciplinary researchers with decades of experience in various domains, including preventive medicine, exercise science, and technology.

Job Godino, PhD. - Director

Dr. Godino is an Associate Research Scientist in the Herbert Wertheim School of Public Health at UCSD and the Director of Applied Research and Technology at EPARC. His current research focuses on the development and evaluation of interventions that utilize mobile and wearable technology (e.g., smart phones, accelerometers, and heart rate monitors) to promote healthy changes in physical activity, sedentary behavior, and diet. Dr. Godino’s research is based in the Center for Wireless and Population Health Systems, which he joined in 2014 after completing a Postdoctoral Fellowship in the Epidemiology and Biostatistics of Aging at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. In 2013, he received his PhD in Epidemiology from the University of Cambridge, where he studied the effects of brief personalized information on objectively measured physical activity. Throughout Dr. Godino’s education and training, he acquired expertise in the objective measurement of physical activity, fitness, and function, and utilized a variety of accelerometers, heart rate monitors, and combined sensors; electrocardiographs and indirect calorimeters; and instruments for balance and gait assessment. He is actively engaged in the analysis of data derived from the aforementioned measurement tools, and he is currently leading studies on the validity of personal health data collected by consumer-level wearable devices.

Jeanne Nichols, PhD, FACSM - Chief Scientific Advisor

Dr. Nichols is Professor Emeritus in the School of Exercise and Nutritional Sciences at San Diego State University (SDSU) and the Scientific Director of EPARC in the Herbert Wertheim School of Public Health at UCSD. Her broad research interest is in exercise and musculoskeletal health across the lifespan, in populations ranging from young female athletes at risk for energy deficiency, to frail elderly. She is the former Director of the SDSU Adult Fitness Program and on-going consultant to the San Diego County Aging and Independence Services, which is the federally designated Area Agency on Aging, where she advises on program implementation, evaluation, and instructor training on a County-wide exercise and fall prevention program for older adults, with the overall goal to prevent falls, fractures, and loss of independence. She was the 2009 recipient of the Distinguished Faculty Award from the SDSU College of Professional Studies & Fine Arts, and the Excellence in Research Award in 2010 from the Sports Physical Therapy Section of the American Physical Therapy Association.

Ryan Moran, MD, MPH - Medical Director

Dr. Moran is an Associate Professor in the Department of Medicine and in the Herbert Wertheim School of Public Health. Dr. Moran is a member of the Center for Wireless and Population Health Systems, and is the Medical Director for EPARC, and a core member of the DXA Training School, all based in the Qualcomm Institute. He sees primary care patients at La Jolla Internal Medicine at UCSD.  He serves as the PI for the ongoing pilot that has developed the Strong Foundations curricula.

David Wing, PhD, MS, CPT, CBDT - Senior Manager

David R. Wing, PhD, is the Senior Manager of the Exercise and Physical Activity Resource Center (EPARC) at the University of California, San Diego, where he oversees the day-to-day operations of a state-of-the-science research laboratory and contributes to the design, implementation, and dissemination of a wide range of clinical, behavioral, and digital health research studies. Over more than a decade at UC San Diego, he has contributed to research spanning physical activity and sedentary behavior, wearable technologies, body composition, physical function, aging, brain health, sleep, and chronic disease prevention. He has contributed to more than 100 research studies and has played a central role in developing measurement protocols, operational workflows, and data-collection systems for large-scale and complex clinical research programs.
Dr. Wing’s research interests center on the measurement and application of human behavior and physiology in real-world settings. His work examines how wearable and other digital technologies can be used to measure physical activity, sleep, cardiorespiratory fitness, and related physiological outcomes; how these measurements can be validated and interpreted across populations and settings; and how they can be translated into scalable interventions and clinically meaningful tools. His recent research has focused particularly on the relationships among physical activity, fitness, body composition, brain aging, cognitive health, and functional independence in older adults, as well as the use of technology to deliver and evaluate remotely administered health interventions.
In addition to his research activities, Dr. Wing has extensive experience in research operations, measurement science, and the translation of scientific methods into clinical and educational settings. He has contributed to the development of curricula for Exercise is Medicine® and preventive medicine training programs, helping integrate physical activity assessment and exercise prescription into medical education and clinical practice. He also serves as Clinical Director of the UCSD School of Bone Densitometry, where he developed and oversees educational and experiential training programs in bone densitometry and clinical measurement. His career reflects a longstanding interest in connecting rigorous physiological measurement with practical tools that can improve research, clinical care, and population health.

Michael Higgins, MS, CCRC - Research Associate

Michael is a Clinical Research Coordinator at EPARC with a master’s in exercise physiology from San Diego State University. He helps run large-scale actigraphy studies, improves best practices for activity tracking, and explores how commercial devices can be used in research and healthcare. He also coordinates Dr. Eric Hekler’s YourMove study, which uses digital tools to help people stay active. He’s especially interested in testing new wearable tech and understanding what keeps people motivated to exercise. When he’s not at work, you’ll find him at a Padres game, hanging out at the beach, or enjoying San Diego with his family.

SHOSHI BARKAI, MSRD - RESEARCH ASSOCIATE

Shoshi has been a registered dietitian for over 25 years. She was the Outstanding Graduate Student for her dual master’s degrees in Nutrition and Exercise Physiology from San Diego State University in 2005. Since 2007 she has been leading clinical research for cancer prevention at the Moore’s Cancer Center at UCSD, coordinating, among others, the ENERGY trial and the I Can! Study for breast cancer survivors. At EPARC she has been a lead instructor for the Strong Foundations and Strong Survivor programs, counselor for the Prehab study and coordinator for the OPACH Study Shoshi is passionate about helping people adopt healthy lifestyles through a diet and exercise. She has given lectures to large public groups such as the Living Beyond Breast Cancer organization, and professional organizations like the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics. In her free time, Shoshi enjoys volunteering, hiking, reading, and spending time with her husband and daughter.

DANIEL MORENO, MS - RESEARCH ASSOCIATE, MEASUREMENT SPECIALIST

Daniel is a Measurement Specialist and a Certified Phlebotomist at EPARC. He received his master’s degree in exercise physiology from San Diego State University in 2018. He is responsible for conducting the majority of in-lab measurements which range from anthropometric measurements, fitness testing, and bone densitometry. Daniel also holds an exercise physiologist and personal trainer license through the American College of Sports Medicine. Born in San Diego, but raised in Tijuana (Mexico), Daniel grew up with a passion for sports and fitness.

KATRYN CRUZ - RESEARCH ASSOCIATE, DEVICE SPECIALIST

Kat graduated with a degree in Public Health from UC San Diego. She has been part of the EPARC team since 2021, working on the WHI DALI and OPACH2 Studies to help track and analyze health data from remote monitoring devices. She’s also involved in developing best practices for using mobile EKGs and GPS alongside activity monitors in research. Her main areas of interest focus on modifiable health behaviors in public health, especially promoting physical activity and supporting smoking cessation. She’s passionate about finding ways to use technology to help people make lasting, positive health changes. At the end of the day, Kat loves turning research into real-world solutions that make a difference!

LAUREN CLARAVALL - RESEARCH ASSOCIATE, ADMINISTRATIVE COORDINATOR OF SCHOOL OF BONE DENSITOMETRY

Lauren graduated with a degree in Biology from UC San Diego (2010) and has worked for the Herbert Wertheim School of Public Health (formerly the Department of Family Medicine and Public Health) ever since. She began as a research assistant for various multi-site research studies at UCSD, including the Diabetes Prevention Program Outcomes Study, performing both measurement collection and administrative assistance. She was  the study coordinator for the MrOS (Osteoporotic Fractures in Men) Study at UCSD until it completed in 2025. Lauren joined the EPARC team in 2018 as the Administrative Coordinator for the School of Bone Densitometry while also assisting in measurement collection for various EPARC projects. In addition to her work with EPARC, she has also served as the study coordinator for projects in the Department of Medicine and the Department of Orthopaedic Surgery.

Kevin Patrick, MD, MS - Founding Director

Dr. Patrick is Professor in the Herbert Wertheim School of Public Health at UCSD, Director and the founder of EPARC and the Center for Wireless and Population Health Systems at Calit2, and past Editor-in-Chief of the American Journal of Preventive Medicine. His research focuses on the use of information and telecommunications technology to measure and improve health-related behaviors of individuals and populations. He is a Senior Advisor to the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) Active Living Research program and a member of the National Advisory Committee of the RWJF Health Games Research initiative. He has served on the Secretary’s Council for Health Promotion and Disease Prevention of the US Department of Health and Human Services and on the Armed Forces Epidemiological Board. Dr. Patrick is Co-founder of Santech, Inc. of San Diego, California, which is developing web and mobile systems for health promotion and wellness.

Linda Hill, MD, MPH - Former Medical Director

Dr. Hill is Professor in the Herbert Wertheim School of Public Health at UCSD, and was the original Medical Director at EPARC. In this capacity, and in partnership with Dr. Nichols and Mr. Wing she originated an Exercise is Medicine curriculum for the UCSD/SDSU Preventive Medicine Residency that is still in use today. San Diego Family Care, a Federal 330 Community Health Center, is the site of her clinical activities, as Medical Director from 1980 to 2001, and Senior Staff Physician since 2001. She is the Medical Director of the UCSD Training, Research and Education for Driving Safety (treds.ucsd.edu) and Co-Director of the UCSD Injury Epidemiology and Prevention Research Center.  She is engaged in prevention research and teaching with current/past support from the NIH, the California Office of Traffic Safety, Robert Wood Johnson, American Cancer Society, and Health Services Resource Administration, and the AAA Foundation For Traffic Safety, including research in injury prevention, driving safety, obesity, decision making, compliance, physician training, physical activity, and refugee health. Her hobbies include classical piano and ocean sports.