About
Named as Interim Provost in 2025, William Farquhar has been a member of the UD faculty since 2002.
Farquhar has served as dean of the College of Health Sciences (CHS) since 2022. Under his leadership, CHS launched new academic programs, increased enrollment in several graduate programs, strengthened its research infrastructure and deepened community and industry partnerships.
He previously served as dean of research, and from 2011-17, he chaired the Department of Kinesiology and Applied Physiology. During his tenure, the department saw a growth in enrollment, supporting one of the most popular majors on campus. He also worked with leadership to dramatically expand research and teaching space and implemented a strategic plan that prioritized metrics related to rankings.
In addition, Farquhar chaired the University’s Institutional Review Board, a group of UD scientists and non-scientists as well as outside community members that reviews and approves any research involving human subjects, biospecimens or identifiable private information.
Farquhar joined UD as an assistant professor of kinesiology and applied physiology. He was promoted to associate professor in 2008 and full professor in 2014. Prior to joining UD, Farquhar was an instructor at Harvard Medical School and an assistant scientist at the HRCA Research and Training Institute.
Farquhar’s research focuses on blood pressure, particularly hypertension and its interaction with salty diets and exercise, and it has been continuously funded by the National Institutes of Health for 20 years. He publishes regularly, with more than 100 papers appearing in top journals.
A fellow of the National Academy of Kinesiology and fellow and former vice president of the American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM), Farquhar also served on the Board of Directors of the Federation of the American Societies for Experimental Biology, co-chaired ACSM’s World Congress on the Basic Science of Exercise and Vascular Health and chaired the NIH Hypertension and Microcirculation study section.
He earned his bachelor’s and master’s degrees at East Stroudsburg University and his doctorate in exercise and sports science/exercise physiology at Pennsylvania State University.
