Dr. David R. Tillman

Biography

Since August 2015, Dr. Tillman has served as Chair of the Department of Public Health at Campbell University College of Pharmacy & Health Sciences. Under his leadership, the rural health program at Campbell University has earned full accreditation from the Council on Education for Public Health (CEPH) and attained full membership status in the Association of Schools and Programs of Public Health (ASPPH). Dr. Tillman teaches courses in rural health, community health assessment, and the ethics of public health, as well as leading study abroad in Guatemala & Haiti.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Dr. Tillman served as a staff epidemiologist for the Emergency Operations Center in Raleigh, NC. He also managed the contact tracing operations for Campbell University for two years. As an expert in public health, Dr. Tillman was interviewed for print, broadcast, and online media—including WRAL-TV, Cardinal & Pine, PBS-NC, and several podcasts.

Before joining the faculty of Campbell University, Dr. Tillman worked as a Leadership Development & Strategic Planning Consultant in state government, helping school systems throughout the state to improve systems and outcomes for students with disabilities. Dr. Tillman also spent a decade working in local school systems focused on designing multi-tiered systems of supports and adapting public health intervention theory for implementation in public schools.

Alongside his work at Campbell, Dr. Tillman consults with health care systems, local health departments, and state governments regarding strategies for improving health—especially in rural contexts. In our state, he serves as a member of several statewide committees—including the North Carolina Opioid and Prescription Drug Abuse Advisory Committee (OPDAAC), North Carolina Rural Health Leadership Alliance, North Carolina Committee on Dental Health, and the North Carolina Institute of Medicine Healthy NC 2030 Social & Economic Factors Expert Panel. In his local community, Dr. Tillman has chaired the Healthy Harnett Coalition and served on the advisory boards for United Way, Special Olympics, Teens as Parents, and ECU Dental School’s Community Service Learning Center in Lillington.

Dr. Tillman holds degrees in English (BA – Campbell University), Education (MEd – Campbell University), Global Studies (MA – University of North Carolina at Greensboro), and Educational Psychology (PhD – North Carolina State University)