Dr. Chaya Gopalan
Professor
Departments of Exercise, Sport, and Nutrition Sciences, and Nurse Anesthesiology
(e-mail)
Education:
PhD, 1988, University of Glasgow
MA, 1983, Bangalore University
BS, 1981, Bangalore University
Phone:
618-650-5802
Office:
2612 Vadalabene Center
1250-5 Health Sciences Building
About Dr. Gopalan
Dr. Chaya Gopalan holds a Ph.D. in Neuroendocrinology from the University of Glasgow, Scotland, and completed postdoctoral research at Michigan State University. She is a professor at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville (SIUE), holding a joint appointment between the Department of Exercise, Sport, and Nutrition Sciences (School of Education, Health and Human Behavior) and the Department of Nurse Anesthesiology (School of Nursing). A distinguished educator and accomplished researcher, her expertise spans two core areas: Neuroendocrinology and Evidence-Based Pedagogical Research in STEM education.
Dr. Gopalan is internationally recognized for her pioneering work in the Flipped Classroom instructional model. She has led multiple major National Science Foundation (NSF)-funded projects, including the Innovative Flipped Learning Instruction Project (IFLIP), dedicated to scaling and studying the effectiveness of student-centered learning across diverse institutions, including community colleges and minority-serving programs. Her commitment to educational excellence and innovation has earned her prestigious honors, including the Fulbright Scholar Award and the Arthur C. Guyton Educator of the Year Award from the American Physiological Society. She continues to contribute to the university community as an Equity Consultant and Global Nursing Enrollment Strategist.
Beyond her grant-funded work, Dr. Gopalan is a prolific author and contributor to academic literature. Her major works include:
Books
- Essentials of Physiology for Nurse Anesthetists(Open Educational Resource, 2025).
- Biology of Cardiovascular and Metabolic Diseases(Academic Press/Elsevier, 2022).
Book Chapters
Gopalan, C., Shenoy, V., Armbruster, J., & Kinsley, P. (2025). Investigating fatigue in rats on high fat regimen. In C. R. Martin, V. R. Preedy, V. B. Patel, & R. Rajendram (Eds.), The scientific basis of fatigue (pp. 335–346). Elsevier.
Gopalan, C. Designing Activities and Assessing Student Learning in the Flipped Classroom inStudent-Centered Learning: Subversive Teachers and Standardized Worlds (2020).
Peer-reviewed Articles (Select)
Mohan, T.C., Rajulu, Gopalan C., & Mohanram, A. (2025). Collaborative Learning and Soft Skills Seminar (CLASS): A Novel Large Class Pedagogy to Address Massification in Higher Education. Advances in Physiology Education: 49(4): 924-928. doi: 10.1152/advan.00063.2025.
Gopalan, C. (2025). Enhancing Student Learning with Flipped Teaching and Retrieval Practice Integration. Advances in Physiology Education: 49(1): 147-153. https://doi.org/10.1152/advan.00080.2024.
Shenoy, V.*, Ghimire, A.K.*, & Gopalan, C. (2024). A New Approach to Peripheral Nerve Block Education with the Anatomage Table as a Learning Adjunct. Advances in Physiology Education 48(4): 818-823. doi.org/10.1152/advan.00028.2024.
Gopalan, C.,Halpin, P., Selvam, A.A. & Hung, W. C. (2024). Exploring educational transformations through the innovative flipped learning instruction project (IFLIP) symposium. Advances in Physiology Education. 48(3), 505–511. doi.org/10.1152/advan.00027.2024.
Gopalan, C.,Whittington, K.D., Daughrity, S.*, Bruno, E.*, and Rowbotham, M. (2024). Exploring the shift from traditional lectures to flipped teaching in rural nursing programs. Teaching and Learning in Nursing. 19(4), e703-e708. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.teln.2024.07.005.
Gopalan, C., Bruno, E.*, Daughrity, S.*, Leoni-Nguyen, K. (2024). Flipping the anatomy classroom: A comparative analysis of 16-Week and 8-Week courses in a community college. Frontiers in Education doi: 10.3389/feduc.2024.1389825.
Gopalan, C., Niepoetter, P.*, Butts-Wilmsmeyer, C., Medavaka, S.*, Ogle, A.*, Daughrity, S.*, Hackmann, E.*, Mogan, S.*, & Lenz, O.* (2023). Comparing intermittent fasting and voluntary wheel running on physical and cognitive abilities in high-fat-induced obese rats. PLOS One 18(12): e0293415. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0293415.
Onal, S., Butts-Wilmsmeyer, C., Dickey, P.*, Serrano, C.*, Bracey, G., Bartels, L., Locke, S., Fickas, J., & Gopalan, C. (2023). Flipped teaching eased the transition to online learning of college students in STEM courses during COVID-19. International Journal of Teaching & Learning in Higher Education 35(2):196-208.
Niepoetter, P.*, Butts-Wilmsmeyer, C., & Gopalan, C. (2022). Intermittent fasting and mental and physical fatigue in high fat-induced obese and non-obese rats. PLOS ONE. 7(11): e0275684. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0275684
Gopalan, C., Serrano, C.*, Dickey, P.*, Daughrity, S.*, Hackmann, E.*, Bracey, G., Bartels, L., Fickas, J., Locke, S., & Butts-Wilmsmeyer, C. (2022). Flipped teaching transition to online teaching by the STEM educators during the COVID-19 pandemic. Advances in Physiology Education 46(3):677-684. https://doi.org/10.1152/advan.00148.2022
Gopalan, C., Awooda, H.A., and Elmardi, A. (2022). Virtual faculty training on flipped teaching using a flipped design during the COVID-19 pandemic. Journal of Faculty Development: 36(3): 64-72.
Halpin, P. & Gopalan, C. (2022). Using the teaching career enhancement award from the American Physiological Society to train faculty to successfully implement flipped teaching. Advances in Physiology Education 46(2): 345-350. doi.org/10.1152/advan.00020.2022
Gopalan, C., Ferguson, M. & Bartels, L. (2022). Student engagement in the synchronous online course delivery. TOPkit. https://topkit.org/developing/tools-techniques-strategies/student-engagement-in-synchronous-online-course-delivery/
Gopalan, C., Niepoetter, P.*, Ogle, A.*, & Medavaka, S.*, Olendorff, S. *, & Tucker, K. (2021). The Role of perinatal testosterone on exploratory behavior, sexual motivation, and spatial working memory in adult rats. Endocrinology and Metabolism International Journal 9(3):54-59. https://medcraveonline.com/EMIJ/EMIJ-09-00309.php
Niepoetter, P.*, Kaviani, S., Butts-Wilmsmeyer, C., Viernow, C.*, Ruholl, H.*, & Gopalan, C. (2021). Correlation between ketones and mental fatigue in high fat-induced obese and non-obese rats. Physiological Reports 9(13): e14930. doi:10.14814/phy2.14930
Gopalan, C., Nguyen, N. T.*, & Kist, W. B. (2021). Farmer’s fear: Ehrlichiosis, a tick-borne disease. HAPS Educator 25(2) 103-113. doi.org/10.21692/haps.2021.007
Halpin, P. & Gopalan, C. (2021). Teaching membrane transport concepts using flipped classroom and dramatizations. American Biology Teacher 83(5): 337-340. doi.org/10.1525/abt.2021.83.5.337
Pérez-Cornejo, P., Corral-Fernandez, N.E., Guzman-Hernandez, M.L., & Gopalan, C. (2021). Nutrition education on obesity and diabetes to medical students. Advances in Physiology Education 45(2): 217-223. doi:10.1152/advan.00193.2020
Beason-Abmayr, B., Caprette, D.R., & Gopalan, C. (2021). Flipped teaching eased the transition from face-to-face teaching to online instruction during the COVID-19 pandemic. Advances in Physiology Education 45(2):384–389. doi.org/10.1152/advan.00248.2020
Gopalan, C., Butts-Wilmsmeyer, C., & Moran, V.* (2021). Virtual flipped teaching during the COVID-19 pandemic. Advances in Physiology Education 45(4): 670–678. doi:10.1152/advan.00061.2021
Gopalan, C. (2021). Benefits behind barriers in physiology education. Advances in Physiology Education 45(1): 31-33. doi:10.1152/advan.00189.2020
Halpin, P. & Gopalan, C. (2021). Using flipped teaching with dramatizations to teach cell signaling enhances learning and improves students’ confidence in the concept. Advances in Physiology Education 45(1): 89-94. doi.org/10.1152/advan.00177.2020
Zuercher, J. & Gopalan, C. (2020). Introducing physiology of diabetes to American Asian middle school and high school students. Advances in Physiology Education 44(4):587-591. doi:10.1152/advan.00088.2020
* Denotates Student
