Philip A. Kern, MD, currently serves as co-director of the University of Kentucky Center for Clinical and Translational Science (CCTS) and is a Professor of Medicine, Division of Endocrinology in the College of Medicine. He has also served as Associate Provost for Clinical and Translational Science and Associate Vice President for Research, Clinical and Translational research.  

Dr. Kern came to UK in 2009 as the inaugural director of the Barnstable Brown Diabetes and Obesity Center and was subsequently appointed the Director of the CCTS.  The CCTS was not NIH-funded at the time, but Dr. Kern and his team successfully obtained funding for the CTSA grant beginning in 2011.  Under Dr. Kern’s leadership, the CTSA grant was successfully renewed in 2016 and 2021, enabling development of many novel programs and capacities: a biobank; a data safety and monitoring board; innovative programs that promote diversity, career development, team science, dissemination and implementation, and community engagement; and an excellent program in biomedical informatics. 

In addition to his formative role in CCTS, Dr. Kern has been continuously funded by the NIH for almost 40 years, studying adipose and muscle biology in both basic and clinical research related to obesity, metabolic syndrome, inflammation, lipid metabolism, diabetes and insulin resistance.  Since 2009, Dr. Kern has been PI or MPI on 12 R01 grants, a co-I on another 19 grants, has led several supplements and pharma studies, and has been a frequent collaborator on many other projects.   In recognition of his research achievements, Dr. Kern was elected into the American Society for Clinical Investigation and its sister organization the American College of Physicians.  At UK, Dr. Kern has been awarded the Fred and Marcelle deBeer award by the Barnstable Brown Diabetes Center and the University Research Professorship representing the College of Medicine.  In 2023 he received the William R. Willard Dean’s Recognition Award, the highest honor in medical education at UK, to honor his dedicated mentorship to countless students, postdocs, and faculty.