Ever since he finished graduate school, Dr. Zach Zeigler has wanted to be named a fellow in the American College of Sports Medicine.
That’s the pinnacle for him.
“The ACSM is really the main organization in the field of exercise science, so it’s always been something I wanted to do once I felt like I was able to do it,” said Zeigler, Grand Canyon University exercise science professor in the College of Natural Sciences.
Zeigler achieved that goal this summer, becoming an ACSM fellow – and he isn’t the college’s only professor to achieve that honor.
Biology professor Dr. Daisy Savarirajan also was named a fellow of the American Scientific Affiliation, an organization of Christian scientists.
Dr. Zach Zeigler
Achieving the title of fellow has been no small potatoes for Zeigler, who has brought students to compete at ACSM events and pushed them to attain the Exercise is Medicine designation from the organization.
“You have to put together this application and apply for it. Then there’s some requirements, such as being a member of the organization for a number of years,” he said. “But the harder requirement is a research application to show you’ve established yourself in a certain area of scholarly work.”
For Zeigler, an avid researcher – he’s also a methodologist in the university’s College of Doctoral Studies – the research component is the crème de la crème part of the application.
GCU stands apart in that it offers undergraduate students a chance to do research through the university’s Research and Design Program. That’s something students don’t often get a chance to do at the undergraduate level. They usually have to wait until graduate school to really dig their heels into research.
“The cool thing is … I’ve done that (met the research requirement) with the assistance of the GCU students. That’s unique in the sense of I don’t have all these graduate students, but the students have been able to grasp and learn lab concepts where they have been able to help produce a lot of this,” Zeigler said.
He added, “From the research side, we’ve been able to put together a good application with a lot of research we’ve done in the area of COVID. And then pre-COVID, we did a lot of cardiovascular-type of research.”
Zeigler also shines a light on his exercise students outside of the Research and Design Program when it comes to service to the organization, another piece of the ACSM fellowship application.
The students hosted the ACSM Southwest Chapter's meeting two years ago in California. They were in charge of registration, administrative work and helmed presentations.
And the campus also has been an Exercise is Medicine campus for about five years.
The global health initiative encourages colleges and universities to prescribe exercise and promote physical activity for better health. GCU's Student Wellness and Health Association, which Zeigler supports as a faculty mentor, partners with the campus’ Canyon Health and Wellness Clinic to do so.
“It’s the idea of, ‘Hey, come into the lab, we’ll give you some advice, we’ll do some tests on you, and then we’ll prescribe some exercise,’” Zeigler said of the initiative.
“Again, students have done a lot of the legwork.”
What this honor means to Zeigler, ultimately, is that he's recognized nationally as an expert in his research area and will continue to advance the academic careers of his students. He also will continue to impact his field as he takes a bigger part int he organization.
It’s more work, but “I enjoy this, otherwise I wouldn’t have done it. It really is a calling,” he said.
Dr. Daisy Savarirajan
Much like Zeigler, Dr. Daisy Savarirajan is passionate about research.
At GCU, much of her time outside of the biology classroom has been spent researching desert plants to test their antimicrobial qualities. She wants to help develop natural and safe drugs that can effectively treat antibiotic-resistant infections and thinks desert plants might be the answer. She shares her research with her students in the Research and Design Program’s Antimicrobial Discovery Lab.
But Savarirajan does all that scientific research while looking through the lens of her faith.
For her, she said, it’s about “biology and the Bible.”
Savarirajan lives out those dual passions as a member of the American Scientific Affiliation.
At one time, the university’s ASA chapter was one of the largest academic clubs on campus.
“Before the pandemic, we were at more than 200 student members,” Savarirajan said. “And then once COVID hit, everything just flopped.”
Four years later, and the chapter’s numbers are back up to a healthy level.
“We are alive and kicking,” Savarirajan said.
Students in the chapter have actively presented at American Scientific Affiliation conferences and have organized speaker events on campus.
“All of these efforts we were doing at GCU were recognized by the ASA leadership at a national level,” Savarirajan said. “That’s when the president herself, she nominated me.”
Before becoming a fellow, ASA members have to be active in the organization for five years before being considered for a fellowship.
Savarirajan said that as a fellow, she will be a spokesperson and ambassador for ASA and will continue to give her time and talent to students and the Christian scientific community.
It enhances the prestige of our university because we are now being recognized not only at a national level but at an international level.
Dr. Daisy Savarirajan, biology professor
It’s a role that she feels will have a profound impact on students and faculty.
“It enhances the prestige of our university,” she said, “because we are now being recognized not only at a national level but at an international level.
“It also opens up tons of opportunities for academic growth.”
Savarirajan sees increased collaboration within the organization, professional development and students benefiting from other fellows who visit campus for talks. Students will rub shoulders with Christian scientists who have succeeded in their careers as science professionals.
“It will just provide a nice, supportive community of Christian scientists … and create a sense of fellowship and encouragement for our students and anyone who’s likeminded. We share the passion of both science and faith, biology and the Bible, so this would provide a nice support system so students can learn beyond what’s being taught in the classroom.”
Savarirajan will be traveling to Washington, D.C., this week for the ASA national conference, where recently elected fellows will be honored.
“It’s pretty cool how we can influence students and peers to grow in their faith and flourish in their science careers,” Savarirajan said. “It’s very significant and meaningful to me being elected as an ASA fellow.”
Manager of Internal Communications Lana Sweeten-Shults can be reached at [email protected] or at 602-639-7901.
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