Hoch Named 2023-24 University Research Professor

by Ryan Clark

CHS Communications Director

LEXINGTON, Ky. (March 31, 2023) — Matthew Hoch, PhD, ATC, has been named a 2023-24 University Research Professor, the College of Health Sciences announced today.

The University Research Professorships were established by the UK Board of Trustees in 1976 to recognize outstanding research achievements. 

Hoch, an associate professor in the College of Health Sciences’ Athletic Training Department, as well as Associate Director of the Sports Medicine Research Institute, joined the University of Kentucky in July 2017 as a faculty member in the Athletic Training program. 

Since then, he has amassed more than $16 million in funding from extramural grants. Currently, he is an active investigator on five separate Department of Defense awards totaling more than $9.6 million in funding.

For his career, Hoch has 159 peer-reviewed manuscripts that have been published and/or accepted/in-press in respected journals, and he has been lead or senior author on more than 60 percent of those publications. Additionally, he has been an author on 191 peer-reviewed abstracts presented at scientific meetings.

Since 2020, Hoch has been serving on the research committee for the International Ankle Consortium, a group of international experts devoted to improving the research of ankle injuries and instability. Most recently, he was voted by its members as the new co-director of the Consortium.

In addition to his own research, Hoch has advised several students at the undergraduate, master’s and doctoral levels, and has also welcomed two post-doctoral research fellows to his group.

“This is an impressive period of scholarship for any faculty member,” said Phillip Gribble, PhD, ATC, FNATA and Chair and Professor of the Department of Athletic Training and Clinical Nutrition in the College of Health Sciences. “I believe Dr. Hoch has solidified his place as a nationally and internationally recognized expert in the field of musculoskeletal injury assessment and intervention, making him a very deserving applicant.”

The honor was not lost on Hoch, who credited his peers and his College for helping his work.

“I am thrilled to be recognized as a University Research Professor and build upon the long line of prolific scholars who have previously represented the College of Health Sciences with this distinction,” he said. “My scholarly accomplishments would not have been possible without the outstanding research environment within the College of Health Sciences and collaboration with many talented colleagues and students. I look forward to representing our college, and our cutting-edge research programs, over the next year.”

Last year’s honoree from the College of Health Sciences was Judith L. Page, PhD, CCC-SLP, FASHA, FNAP, associate professor from Communication Sciences and Disorders.

The University of Kentucky Strategic Plan (2015 – 2020) for Research has an overall objective to expand the scholarship, creative endeavors and research across the full range of disciplines to focus on the most important challenges of the Commonwealth. Strategic Initiatives to achieve this overall objective include investing and recognizing areas of scholarly excellence, while recruiting and retaining outstanding faculty, staff and students. 

The University Research Professors Program recognizes excellence across the full spectrum of research, scholarship and creative endeavors at the University of Kentucky.

“Congratulations to Dr. Hoch for this well-deserved honor,” said Scott Lephart, PhD and Dean of the College of Health Sciences. “This is truly a great example of the impressive research and teaching we have in our College. It is professors and researchers like this who support us in our mission of helping the people of the Commonwealth attain the highest possible level of health. We could not do it without them.”

As the state’s flagship, land-grant institution, the University of Kentucky exists to advance the Commonwealth. We do that by preparing the next generation of leaders — placing students at the heart of everything we do — and transforming the lives of Kentuckians through education, research and creative work, service and health care. We pride ourselves on being a catalyst for breakthroughs and a force for healing, a place where ingenuity unfolds. It's all made possible by our people — visionaries, disruptors and pioneers — who make up 200 academic programs, a $501 million research and development enterprise and a world-class medical center, all on one campus.   

In 2022, UK was ranked by Forbes as one of the “Best Employers for New Grads” and named a “Diversity Champion” by INSIGHT into Diversity, a testament to our commitment to advance Kentucky and create a community of belonging for everyone. While our mission looks different in many ways than it did in 1865, the vision of service to our Commonwealth and the world remains the same. We are the University for Kentucky.