Chief Director
Dee Wyly Distinguished Professor, School of Behavioral and Brain Sciences
Co-Leader, The BrainHealth Project

Sandi Chapman, Founder and Chief Director, Center for BrainHealth, Co-Leader, The BrainHealth Project, Dee Wyly Distinguished Professor


Dr. Sandi Chapman is one of the nation’s preeminent cognitive neuroscientists furthering society's understanding of what makes the brain stronger, faster and last longer. 

Chief Operating Officer

Stephen White in a brown sports coat with blue and green lights, portrait. Chief Operating Officer

With over 15 years as an executive in commercial healthcare products and services, combined with experience as a commercial attorney and CPA, Steve White sees brain health and performance as the next “big thing” to improve how all people think, work and live.

Deputy Director of Research
Debbie and Jim Francis Chair and Professor, School of Behavioral and Brain Sciences 

Daniel Krawczyk, Deputy Director, Center for BrainHealth, Debbie and Jim Francis Chair in Behavioral and Brain Sciences

A professor of psychology and neuroscience, Dr. Dan Krawczyk focuses on research aimed at improving reasoning and decision-making and, having explored this interest for the past 20 years as a professor, author and podcaster. 

Director of Finance

Alfred Abundo in a gray blazer with green lights, portrait. Director of Finance.

A strong advocate of Center for BrainHealth's mission, Al Abundo plays a critical role in the center's success and life-changing discoveries, working in finance and HR operations as a member of the Executive Team.

Director of Strategic Initiatives

Headshot of Ruth Fitzgibbons, BrainHealth Advisory Board.

Ruth Fitzgibbons joined the Executive Team of Center for BrainHealth in 2019 to help shepherd its bold vision of unlocking human potential around the globe through improved brain health and performance.

Co-Leader, Philanthropy


Danny Girton, Assistant Director of Philanthropy.

Danny Girton helps oversee the philanthropy program’s pursuit of gifts from individuals, foundations and corporations to advance BrainHealth investigations and translational efforts. 

Chief Marketing Officer

Laura Bloom Gordon, Chief Marketing Officer at Center for BrainHealth.

Laura Bloom Gordon is a transformational marketing leader who brings her growth mindset to organizations at points of inflection, helping to change the conversation around brain health through strategic initiatives, such as the first-ever BrainHealth Week in February 2023.


Director of Information Technology

Jeremy Gray, PHD is wearing a white dress shirt with green and blue lights, portrait. IT manager

In an evolving career as a research scientist, educator and IT executive, Dr. Jeremy Gray seeks to systematize knowledge and empower people across formal and informal groups. Technology both liberates and constrains how people work, and how they work together.

Inaugural Director, Brainomics Venture
Research Professor

Dr. Nevin leads the Brainomics® Venture, a multi-disciplinary effort to unlock vast human potential by examining the economic impact of interventions to improve brain health and performance. 

Medical Science Research Director

Jane Wigginton, MD, Medical Science Research Director at Center for BrainHealth.

As chief medical science research director, Dr. Jane Wigginton serves as the “go-to” medical expert at Center for BrainHealth, assiting with clinical trials, research protocols, client evaluations and recommendations for care.

Director of Programs

Jennifer Zientz’s work focuses on the translation of Center for BrainHealth research to improve how people think, work and live, in order to empower individuals across the lifespan to take the lead in strengthening their focus, mental efficiency, reasoning and possibility thinking.


Assistant Director of Research

Tandra T. Allen is wearing a gray blouse with lights, portrait.  Head of Virtual Training Programs. 

Tandra Allen has led and developed social-cognitive research studies focused on advancing overall social health. Her clinical research areas include using virtual technology to train social-cognitive skills as well as evaluating the brain systems that change as result of high-level reasoning training.

Jane and Bud Smith Chair

Vince Calhoun in a striped blue dress shirt, portrait. Jane and Bud Smith Chair

Dr. Vince Calhoun leverages data in unprecedented ways to help improve individual cognitive function and optimize the performance of the human brain.

Director of Clinical Research
Head of Research, The BrainHealth Project
Adjunct Assistant Professor, School of Behavioral and Brain Sciences

Lori Cook in a blue blouse with blue lights, portrait. Director of Clinical Research, BrainHealth Research; Head of Research, The BrainHealth Project; Adjunct Assistant Professor, School of Behavioral and Brain Sciences

Dr. Lori Cook, in her roles as both a clinician and research scientist, has focused largely on the long-term recovery of youth after brain injury, including supporting athletes with persistent effects of concussion.

Co-Leader, The BrainHealth Project

Dr. Mark D'Esposito is a distinguished professor of neuroscience and psychology at the University of California, Berkeley and the Carol Heller BrainHealth Project Co-Leader.

In his medical career, Dr. Mark D'Esposito has seen the amazing success that has been achieved promoting cardiac health. Researchers now have the technology and tools to achieve this same kind of success promoting health for the most important organ in the body – the brain.

Bert Moore Endowed Chair and Professor, School of Behavioral and Brain Sciences
Director, Neuroimaging of Reward Dynamics (NiRD) Lab

Francesca Filbey in dark blue blouse with lights, portrait. Professor and Director of Cognitive Neuroscience Research of Addictive Disorders; Bert Moore Chair; Associate Provost, UT Dallas


Dr. Francesca Filbey is a world-renowned expert in the brain mechanisms of addictive disorders. The significance of her research is in advancing the understanding of brain mechanisms to identify targets for prevention and intervention.

Director of Adolescent Reasoning Initiative
Assistant Research Professor

Jacque Gamino in front of green lights, portrait. Director of Adolescent Reasoning Initiative, Assistant Research Professor

A lead researcher in adolescent brain development and executive function remediation, Dr. Jacquelyn Gamino has worked with middle and high schools to enhance student academic performance in the near term and ultimately, lifelong success.

Operations Officer, Optimal BrainHealth for Warfighters

Kevin Gatley, Operations Officer, Optimal BrainHealth for Warfighters at Center for BrainHealth in Dallas. Texas. 

Kevin Gatley leads the vision for improving cognitive capacity in the military, leveraging his own experience to ensure that the application of our tools is thoughtful, integrated and successful. 

Director, Youth and Family Innovations
Lead Research Clinician and Trainer, Charisma Virtual Social Coaching

Maria Johnson is committed to connecting and assisting youth and young adult organizations, clinicians, teachers and families discover how to best support social, emotional and cognitive brain health of neurodiverse minds.

Research Scientist
Donald Bloom Mental Health Promotion Fellow

Dr. Sarah Laane's current research focuses on identifying how frontal lobe engaging strategies improve brain health, including mental health and cognitive performance in the general population and vulnerable populations, including justice-involved individuals and those with mental illness.

BrainHealth Investigator
Professor of Physics, Hanson Center for Space Sciences
Founding Director, MINTS

Dr. David Lary's research primarily focuses on machine learning and data driven insights using observation and automation with a focus in human health.

Jean Ann Brock Distinguished Chair
Co-Leader BrainHealth Project

Physician, researcher and veteran, Dr. Geoff Ling sees cognitive neuroscience as where some of the most exciting, transformative discoveries happen today.

Distinguished BrainHealth Collaborator

Michael Merzenich in a light blue dress shirt in office. Distinguished Collaborator

Dr. Michael Merzenich believes researchers can truly change how our society manages brain health. Novel, small-scale training programs have shown it is possible to improve cognitive performance and real-world function in healthy adults as well as people with clinically significant cognitive disorders.

Director Art-Brain Innovations
Distinguished Scholar in Residence for The Edith O’Donnell Institute of Art History (EODIAH)

As director of art-brain innovations at the UT Dallas Center for BrainHealth, Bonnie Pittman expands her research and teaching of the art of observation, meditation and compassion. Her Power of Observation initiative connects neurological research with the experience and process of seeing, looking and observing. 

Director, Strength-Based Programs
Research Clinician

Audette Rackley is wearing a tan blouse with blue lights, portrait. Assistant Director of Strength-Based Programs


As director of strength-based programs, Audette Rackley currently focuses on impacting the broader Alzheimer’s community via online delivery of the center's strength-based program for early Alzheimer’s and spearheading an online research initiative targeting brain health for caregivers.

T. Boone Pickens Distinguished Chair
Co-Leader, The BrainHealth Project

Dr. Ian Robertson is a leading researcher in the field of mind's attention systems to maximize and reshape the capacity giving every person sense of control over their emotions.

Assistant Operations Officer, SMART FiT Lead

Former Navy service member Colleen Ryan-Hensley applies her expertise in human performance to the Optimal BrainHealth for Warriors program. A seasoned SMART™ coach, she has experience with the center's past warrior programs and longitudinal study, The BrainHealth Project. 


Principal Investigator
Professor, Behavioral and Brain Sciences at UT Dallas
Meadows Foundation Endowed Chair in Behavioral and Brain Sciences
Director, Sammons BrainHealth Imaging Center

Dr. Bart Rypma’s research is aimed at exploring the cognitive and neurobiological mechanisms of human memory and how these are affected by aging and disease. He uses functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to observe the activity of younger and older adults as they perform cognitive tasks.

Director of Biostatistics

Dr. Jeff Spence’s research interest, for which he has received NIH funding, involves the development of theory and methodology applied to analyses of functional neuroimaging studies of the human brain.

Director of Emerging Technology


Aaron Tate is dedicated to getting the Center’s groundbreaking research out of the laboratory and into the hands of those whom it will benefit most. Aaron is a co-creator of the Charisma™ Training Platform and technology lead on The BrainHealth Project.

Head of Clinical Operations

Erin Venza in a black blouse with lights, portrait. Lead Clinician


Erin Venza’s work at Center for BrainHealth has centered on optimizing function and recovery in light of a brain disease or disorder, with much of her current efforts focused on overseeing content creation and support for The BrainHealth Project.

Head of Adult Assessment 

Stacy Quiroz Vernon in a blue blouse and black cardigan with blue lights, portrait. Clinical Program Manager


As head of adult assessment and a lead clinician , Stacy Vernon leads the Concierge BrainHealth Index program and also trains and supervises The BrainHealth Project coaching team.

Co-Leader, Philanthropy

Julie Heckman is wearing a red blouse with green and blue lights, portrait. Assistant Director of Development- hero (?)


Julie Carter Heckman helps lead the philanthropy team in securing financial support from individuals, foundations and corporations for BrainHealth research and translational programming.

Director of Communications and Marketing

Stephanie Hoefken, Director of Communications and Marketing.

Stories of transformation inspire Stephanie Hoefken. Working on – and even leading – innovative research has shaped the careers of emerging scientists. Participating in our programs has improved the quality of life for thousands of people, from all walks of life.

Digital Brand Manager

Cecilia Perez-Verdia enjoys using her strategy and marketing experience to build awareness of the Center's incredible mission. 

Assistant Director of Sponsored Research
Research Sponsored Projects

Cindy Samuelson is wearing a black blouse with lights, portrait. Assistant Director of Sponsored Research

Cindy Samuelsen has experience in research and healthcare administration. Her research expertise includes grant submissions, research regulatory issues, financial management and facility and personnel management.

Center for BrainHealth unites leading neuroscientists from diverse disciplines with a singular goal: unlocking the human brain's potential.

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