Tinker Murray

Tinker D. Murray, PhD, is a professor emeritus and honorary professor of international studies in health and human performance at Texas State University in San Marcos. He earned his PhD in physical education from Texas A&M University in 1984. His research interests include school-based and clinical-based youth physical activity and interventions with public health linkages for the prevention of obesity and diabetes, continuing education opportunities for coaching education, and personal fitness and training applications related to exercise physiology.

From 1982 to 1984, Murray served as director of cardiac rehabilitation at Brooke Army Medical Center, where he was twice recognized for his exceptional performance. He began his career at Texas State University (formerly Southwest Texas State), where he served as the director of employee wellness from 1984 to 1988 and director of the exercise performance laboratory from 1984 to 2000. He was a volunteer assistant cross country and track coach at Southwest Texas State from 1985 to 1988 and helped win three Gulf Star Conference titles.

From 1985 to 1988, he was a subcommittee member for the Governor's Commission on Physical Fitness that developed the Fit Youth Today program. He served as lecturer and examiner for the USA Track and Field Level 2 coaching certification program from 1988 to 2008 and as the vice chair of the Governor's Commission on Physical Fitness in Texas from 1993 to 1994. He worked with the Texas High School Coaches Association (THSCA) from 2003 to 2013 as a facilitator with the Professional Development Cooperative, which promoted continuing education opportunities.

Murray is a fellow of the American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM) and is certified as an ACSM program director. He was a two-time president of the Texas regional chapter of ACSM (1987 and 1994). He served on the national ACSM board of trustees from 1998 to 2001. In the fall of 2003, he was a guest researcher at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Division of Nutrition and Physical Activity. He has been actively involved with the International Society for Physical Activity and Health (ISPAH) and has attended several biannual meetings of the International Congress on Physical Activity and Public Health.

Murray retired from Texas State University in 2018 and was named a professor emeritus and honorary professor of international studies. He continues to remain physically active by cycling daily, jogging often, and lifting weights twice a week. He remains academically active by contributing to scholarly presentations and publications that promote physical active lifestyles.