The Michael & Susan Dell Center for the Advancement of Healthy Living (www.sph.uth.edu/dellthealthyliving) was founded in 2006 with a grant from the Michael & Susan Dell Foundation. The Center was established to conduct research to better understand and influence behaviors and environmental conditions that affect healthy living, with a vision of ‘healthy children in a healthy world’. The Center is housed in the University of Texas School of Public Health, Austin Regional Campus, in Austin, TX.

The Michael & Susan Dell Center for Advancement of Healthy Living focuses research in child and adolescent health promotion, obesity prevention with children, tobacco and alcohol use prevention, and community-based policy and programs to support children’s health.  Key functions of the Center consist of the creation of new scholarly works that push the frontiers of public health science; research and development; translation and dissemination of evidence-based programs and practices; collaboration with community partners; policy evaluation and analysis.  Faculty and staff of the Center are particularly concerned with community, national, and international nutritional and physical activity health related issues, and with the graduate education of students who plan careers in the fields of public health or community nutrition.  A Dietetic Internship program is supported by the Center with accreditation from the American Dietetic Association.

The Dell Center for Healthy Living seeks to achieve the mission and vision of the Center through the prevention and control of childhood obesity through healthy eating and physical activity, promotion of healthy living behaviors in youth, policy and environmental change, and professional education and community service. 

The Dell Center for Healthy Living’s core project is the Coordinated Approach To Child Health (CATCH) program.  For more information on the CATCH program, please visit www.catchtexas.org.