The University of Southern Mississippi - College of Health

Dr. Gould is the Associate Dean for the College of Health as well as a tenured professor and graduate research faculty member within the School of Human Performance at The University of Southern Mississippi. Dr. Gould’s main faculty responsibilities are associated with the University’s Sport and High Performance Materials Program. This one-of-a-kind multidisciplinary program is a joint venture between the School of Human Performance and the School of Polymer Science and Engineering and is designed to cross-train students in both academic fields thereby preparing them to work in research and development in a $400 billion dollar a year sporting goods industry.

Dr. Gould’s expertise lies in applied human-materials testing with respect to prevention of various types of head injury including the brain injury of concussion, facial, and dental injury. His most recent work has dealt with demonstrating the limitations of conventional mouthguard materials, the characterization of new mouthguard material systems, and the human-material characterization of contemporary football and military helmet liner and cushioning systems. The culmination of these recent works have been published in the Journal of Sports Engineering and Technology, the Journal of Macromolecules and the Journal of Dental Materials as well as funded by the United States Department of Defense.

Along with his other Sport and High Performance Materials colleagues, Dr. Gould continues to develop a national expertise under the umbrella of sports medicine that specifically focuses on the new science and discovery of how sport materials and sport equipment interface with the human being.