About Gary Bennett
Gary G. Bennett, Ph.D., is professor and dean of the Trinity College of Arts & Sciences at Duke University.
Academic Leadership
As dean, Dr. Bennett is responsible for attracting, retaining, and nurturing a diverse community of distinguished faculty ensuring a world-class liberal arts education in a research environment for all students. Trinity College of Arts & Sciences is known as the heart of Duke University and serves 80 percent of Duke’s undergraduate population as well as hundreds of graduate students in a wide array of master’s degree and Ph.D. programs. The College’s three academic divisions – the Arts & Humanities, Natural Sciences, and Social Sciences – are home to over 700 faculty and nearly 500 staff,and offers a robust and contemporary liberal arts education in a world-class research environment.
Prior to assuming his role as dean of Trinity College in February 2023, Dr. Bennett served as vice provost for undergraduate education, where he provided strategic vision and leadership for many facets of Duke’s undergraduate experience. As vice provost, he also oversaw the Office of Undergraduate Education, which is comprised of 15 units that enrich Duke's undergraduate academic experience through academic advising, academic support, nationally competitive scholarships, merit scholar programs, financial aid, study abroad, and several co-curricular programs. Under Bennett’s leadership, Duke raised tens of millions and introduced a number of advancements to make the undergraduate experience more enriching and equitable for all students, including the DukeLIFE program to support first-generation and low-income students, and QuadEx, Duke’s inclusive living and learning model that integrates undergraduates’ social, residential and intellectual experiences.
Dr. Bennett is a member of Duke's Bass Society of Fellows and is the founding director of Duke's undergraduate major in global health. He has served on committees to examine Duke's undergraduate curriculum and develop the university's strategic plan and has co-led the Board of Trustees Undergraduate Education Committee since 2018. His students' course ratings have repeatedly placed Dr. Bennett in the top 5% of Duke's undergraduate instructors.
Research
Nearly 20 years ago, Dr. Bennett established one of the first digital health research programs, which has since evolved into a globally recognized leader in designing, testing, and disseminating digital obesity therapeutics. His laboratory has focused on addressing the needs of medically vulnerable populations, consistently producing scalable, AI-driven, and highly personalized technologies that have led to clinically meaningful outcomes. Dr. Bennett’s contributions to the field are extensive, with over 200 scientific publications and continuous funding from the National Institutes of Health. His leadership in the field is further exemplified by his tenure as president of the Society of Behavioral Medicine and his election to prestigious bodies such as the Academy of Behavioral Medicine Research and the Behavioral Medicine Research Council.
Addressing the persistent challenge of achieving reliable weight loss in real world clincial practice settings, Dr. Bennett’s program is conducted largely in primary care settings, these efforts have resulted in high engagement and effective outcomes, even among high-risk populations. This work is particularly notable given the scarcity of low-cost, evidence-based obesity treatments in primary care. Dr. Bennett’s work also extends to weight gain prevention, providing the first evidence of effective treatment solutions for primary care, further expanding the scope of comprehensive obesity care.
Dissemination
Dr. Bennett has also co-founded three digital health ventures. Crimson Health Solutions developed digital disease management interventions and was acquired by Health Dialog in 2007. In 2014, he co founded Scale Down, a digital obesity treatment startup based on the science of daily self-weighing. Scale Down was acquired by Anthem in 2017. He is a co-founder of Coeus Health, a leading provider of health APIs. Dr. Bennett advises leading digital health and consumer electronic organizations on the science of health behavior change.
Education
Before joining Duke in 2009, Dr. Bennett served on the faculties of the Harvard School of Public Health and the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute. Dr. Bennett earned a bachelor's degree at Morehouse College, an AM and PhD in clinical health psychology at Duke University, completed a clinical internship in medical psychology at the Duke University Medical Center, and was the Alonzo Yerby postdoctoral fellow in social epidemiology at the Harvard School of Public Health.
