September 4, 2026 | Erin Bluvas, bluvase@sc.edu

KeithAnn Halle’s interest in neurologic physical therapy began early in her career when she joined the Concussion Care Clinic at Fort Bragg’s Womack Army Medical Center. It was Halle’s first clinical role, having just completed back-to-back master’s and doctoral degrees in the field at the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill.

“I was treating service members who had suffered from a concussion and continued to have symptoms such as dizziness, headache and balance deficits,” recalls Halle, who joined the Department of Exercise Science’s Doctor of Physical Therapy (DPT) program as a clinical assistant professor this fall. “We were able to expand the physical therapy rehabilitation program for the clinic, and I remain passionate about treating members of the military population.”

Halle’s next role took her to the Concussion Clinic at Schofield Barracks in Hawaii, where she served individuals who had experienced concussions. The program also introduced her to adaptive sporting events for active-duty service members, which has been an area of interest for her ever since.

After returning to the continental U.S., Halle continued building her clinical experience – expanding to home healthcare but also amassing additional expertise working with athletes and serving in nearly every type of physical therapy setting. It was around this time that she began teaching college courses – first as an athletic training adjunct faculty member at Dominican College and then with the physical therapy program at the University of Puget Sound.

Preparing students for the profession became her calling, and Halle served as the director for clinical education at the University of Puget Sound and then Arcadia University. These roles led Halle to develop an interest in professional identify formation among physical therapy students as well as knowledge translation into the clinical setting.

“I worked primarily with the hybrid DPT students at Arcadia, and I find the trajectory of development interesting across educational media,” she says.

This interest led Halle to enroll in an EdD in Leadership and Learning in Organizations program at Vanderbilt University, which she will complete next year. She also just wrapped a three-year term as recording secretary for the Clinical Education Special Interest Group in the American Physical Therapy Association’s Academy of Education. Another fun extracurricular for Halle is her involvement with the Academy of Neurological Physical Therapy Historical Committee.

“For the past three years and moving forward, I get to interview movers and shakers in the PT world for the ANPT podcast, and that is always so motivating,” she says.

In addition to her investment in the development of students, Halle’s teaching interests include the neurologic and vestibular rehabilitation therapies that have been a recurring theme throughout her career. She also specializes in anatomy and functional therapeutic exercise prescription.

Ready to work with students in person, Halle joined the Arnold School’s DPT program because she believes that small class sizes lead to “thick mentorship.”

“I missed the relationships built when you are learning together,” Halle says. “I have developed so much as a professor and clinician because of the mentorship I have received, and I want to continue that tradition. I am passionate about developing the next generation of PTs, and I think this is one of the best places to do that.”

“We’re really excited to have KeithAnn join our team,” EXSC chair Shawn Arent says. “She brings a skillset as a clinician that enhances our DPT program and significant academic and leadership experience that will add to the faculty’s capacity. Hires like this make us instantly better.”