Alumni Spotlight with Kevin Cousins | Penn State College of Health and Human Development

Kevin Cousins, PA-C 2009 graduate of Fitness Studies

Majoring in Kinesiology laid the foundation for his career. The course work and exposure really solidified his decision to enter the sports medicine realm

Kevin Cousins’ life changed forever in the fall of 2005. Stepping onto campus as a new freshman football player from Richmond, Virginia, proved to be both exciting and unnerving. As most freshmen can relate, this was his first time away from home. The next four years of connections and adventures would shape Kevin into the man he is today. The herculean task of balancing demands both on and off the field helped in developing time management skills and critical thinking. It was a “tremendous blessing” to partake in the "Happy Valley Experience" and he is eternally grateful for the Penn State family.

Kevin shared that his most impactful courses were KINES 456: Physical Fitness Appraisal and KINES 202: Functional Human Anatomy due to the depth and breadth of information these courses provided. The Scientific Basis of Exercise for Older Adults, KINES 481, provided guidance that would shape his bedside manner for future patients. In addition, his sophomore and junior years gave him hands-on experience with sports medicine due to an injury. Being a patient of his peers and going from injury to diagnoses, tests, and treatment, he was able to gain additional insight into what his future in the medical field would entail.

Since leaving Penn State, Kevin has received a B.S. in Physician Assistant Studies in 2012 from Long Island University, Brooklyn. Currently, he is a Physician Assistant at the Center for Advanced Sports Medicine Knee and Shoulder in Millburn, NJ. Plus, he is involved with concussion research with the New Jersey high school football program, has been a part of a research study published in the Science Direct Journal of Orthopaedics in 2020, and participated in a new FDA clinical trial involving a biological injection treatment for symptomatic knee osteoarthritis. It is no surprise Kevin gives back to his community by volunteering as an assistant high school football coach and sports medicine staff.

When asked what his favorite Penn State memory was, Kevin said, “BY FAR...nothing compares to running out of the tunnel welcomed by over 100,000 screaming fanatics. Color me biased, but there is no greater college football venue”.

The Kinesiology Department is honored to count Kevin Cousins as one of our alumnus.