Deanna Gates, PhD

Dr. Deanna Gates is an associate professor of Movement Science and director of the Rehabilitation Biomechanics Laboratory (RBL) at the University of Michigan School of Kinesiology. She is also an associate professor of Biomedical Engineering in the College of Engineering and Medical School. Prior to her time at U-M, Dr. Gates was a research biomechanist, then site supervisor at the Brooke Army Medical Center in Fort Sam Houston, TX. She completed her PhD in Biomedical Engineering at the University of Texas at Austin.

Dr. Gates has published more than 40 articles in peer-reviewed journals, including the Journal of Biomechanics, Experimental Brain Research, and Gait & Posture. Her research has received more than $5 million in grant funding from entities such as the Department of Defense, National Science Foundation, and the Department of Veterans Affairs. She is an associate editor for IEEE Transactions on Neural Systems and Rehabilitation Engineering.  

Her current professional memberships include the American Society of Biomechanics, the Gait and Clinical Movement Analysis Society, and the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE). She is also a member of the U-M Robotics Institute.

Dr. Gates teaches biomechanics courses at the undergraduate and graduate level. She has also mentored girls interested in exploring science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) fields through the Females Excelling More in Math, Engineering, and the Sciences (FEMMES).