By Varshini Chellapilla
At the Penn Memory Center and the Alzheimer’ Disease Research Center at the University of Pennsylvania, we are committed to training the next generation of clinicians and researchers. The Christopher M. Clark Scholars program was created to encourage and guide early career researchers as they study the various aspects of Alzheimer’s disease, mild cognitive impairment, cognitive aging, and lifelong brain health.
This year’s scholars are Lasya Sreepada, Xueying Lyu, Brianna Morgan, Kyra O’Brien, and Nicole Nissim, who come from diverse backgrounds in bioengineering, nursing and clinical research.
Christopher M. Clark was the founding director of the Penn Memory Center. Among his many accomplishments were his role in the team that demonstrated the ability of a florbetapir PET scan to detect brain deposits of beta-amyloid, his co-development of the Dementia Severity Rating Scale, and contributions to the development of therapies for Alzheimer’s disease.
The scholars program at PMC was renamed last year to be the Christopher M. Clark Scholars Program to honor Dr. Clark’s achievements as well as his dedication to research and promoting awareness of Alzheimer’s disease.