Distinguished Alum
Dr. Robert F. Valois '76
2023 Distinguished Alumni Award Recipient
Dr. Valois earned his AS degree in Humanities & Social Sciences (Cum Laude) from SUNY Corning Community College, BS degree in Health Science from SUNY College at Brockport, MS in School Health and PhD in Community Health/Educational Psychology/Program Evaluation from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. He completed his Postdoctoral Fellowship, a US Public Health Service Traineeship and the MPH degree in Health Behavior at the University of Alabama-Medical Center, School of Public Health in Birmingham. Dr. Valois has been funded for research by NIH, NIMH, CDC, HHS, the US DOE & DJJ, and by the Pew Charitable Trusts, Robert Wood Johnson and Rockefeller Foundations. He has been recognized for teaching excellence, creative research, the use of media (TV & Radio) in health promotion and for distinguished professional service.
Dr. Valois is a Fellow of the: American School Health Association, American Academy of Health Behavior, and American Association for Health Education. Recognition by the American School Health Association includes: Dr. William A. Howe Award (ASHA’s highest recognition), Research Scholar Award, Distinguished Service Award, Substance Abuse Prevention Award and Presidential Citation (for service as Editor-in-Chief for the Journal of School Health). Dr. Valois is also the 2002 American Association for Health Education (AAHE) Scholar (AAHE’s highest recognition). His research, teaching and service is focused on adolescent & school health; adolescent health risk behaviors, developmental assets; life satisfaction; healthy school communities; smoking cessation; and health promotion program evaluation.
Dr. Valois held faculty positions at: Eastern Illinois University, University of Illinois, University of Texas, and University of South Carolina. Over a 38-year career, Dr. Valois has 220 total publications including books, monographs and book chapters with 172 publications as research articles in prestigious, peer-reviewed journals such as: the American Journal of Public Health, Journal of Adolescent Health, Journal of School Health, and Journal of Behavioral Medicine, among others. Success with external grant funding totaled 23.5 million. Dr. Valois has directed 17 doctoral dissertations, 11 Master’s theses, and 9 undergraduate Honors theses.
Dr. Valois consulted for the: National Institutes of Health; US Centers for Disease
Control & Prevention; US
Department of Health & Human Services; American Academy for Educational Development;
Association for Supervision & Curriculum Development; Hong Kong Institute of Education;
National Department of Health-
Taiwan; Chinese University of Hong Kong; Research Grants Council of Hong Kong; Taiwan
National Health Promotion Bureau; and Agency for Health Quality and Assessment of
Catalonia-Spain.
Spouse Sandy Kammermann Valois (pictured above) is an Emeritus Professor in the USC School of Medicine and served as Director of Education & Research at the Martin Primary Health Care Center in Winnsboro, South Carolina. Daughter Aubrie A. Valois is a former Apparel Designer employed by Tommy Hilfiger, Inc.; Aeropostale; and Jordache/US Polo Association in New York City and currently a Graduate Student and Instructor in Apparel Design & Merchandising at Colorado State University, Fort Collins, Colorado.