Phillip Palmer

Dr. Palmer joined the Doctor of Physical Therapy program as a part-time professor on August 1, 2023, and was appointed Program Director in a full-time capacity on July 1, 2025. With more than 45 years of experience in physical therapy, he has practiced in hospitals and outpatient centers across Texas and Georgia, as well as internationally in Bethlehem, Jericho, and the Gaza Strip. While in the Middle East, he taught in the School of Nursing and Allied Health Sciences in Gaza and helped develop a physical therapy program that was later implemented at Bethlehem University. 

Dr. Palmer has also served as a physical therapy consultant in Beirut, Lebanon, and as the team physical therapist for a semi-professional basketball team in Larnaca, Cyprus. His academic career includes teaching positions at the Medical College of Georgia, Hardin-Simmons University in Abilene, Texas, and the University of North Georgia. He also served as the founding director of the Doctor of Physical Therapy program at the Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine–Georgia. 

He earned a Bachelor of Science in Physical Therapy from the University of Texas Medical Branch in Galveston (1976), a Master of Health Education in Physical Therapy from the Medical College of Georgia (1983), and a Master of Arts in Religious Education from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary (1990). He later completed a PhD in Higher Education, with a minor in Research, at the University of North Texas in 2001. 

Dr. Palmer’s teaching experience spans a wide range of subjects, including anatomy, neuroscience, medical physiology, pharmacology, diagnostics, research, leadership, administration, and physical therapy sciences. His research interests focus on teaching and learning effectiveness, rehabilitation issues for cancer survivors, and the development and application of cultural intelligence in students. 

In his free time, Dr. Palmer enjoys spending time with his wife, children, and nine grandchildren, all of whom reside in Abilene, Texas.