Dr. Adgate is a professor in the Colorado School of Public Health Department of Environmental & Occupational Health and an affiliate faculty member of the Center for Health, Work & Environment at the school. Dr. Adgate is also an affiliate faculty member of the Department of Environmental & Radiological Health Science at Colorado State University and the University of Colorado Cancer Center.
He served as the chair of the Department of Environmental & Occupational Health from August 2009 until July 2021. His research on exposure science, risk analysis, and children’s environmental health has focused on improving exposure estimation in epidemiologic studies by documenting the magnitude and variability of human exposures to chemical and biological stressors. His current research focuses on the risks, health, and community impacts of oil and gas development; the impact of heat and air pollution on the development of chronic kidney disease in Guatemalan sugarcane workers; and exposure and health effects stemming from perfluoroalkyl chemical (PFAS) exposure. He is one of the principal investigators in the national multi-site PFAS exposure and health effects study funded by ATSDR/CDC.
Dr. Adgate has served on multiple science advisory panels for the U.S. EPA and the National Academies of Science committees exploring technical and policy issues related to PFAS exposure and remediation, residential exposure to pesticides and air pollutants, impacts of energy development on human health, lead-exposure interventions, and the impacts of climate change on indoor air quality. He received an MSPH in Environmental Science and Engineering from the School of Public Health at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and a PhD in Environmental Health from Rutgers University.