UNE and Dana Foundation educate the public about aging and the brain

Geoff Ganter, Rob Anderson and Stacey Thieme participate in a panel discussion about aging and the brain
Geoff Ganter, Rob Anderson and Stacey Thieme participate in a panel discussion about aging and the brain

The Dana Foundation, a national brain research organization, recently teamed up with the University of New England to host a program for the public about aging and the brain.

Approximately 70 adults from the community attended the event, titled, “Successful Aging and Your Brain! Staying Sharp: Ask the Experts.” Erica Robertson, M.P.H.(c), fitness director for UNE’s U-ExCEL program, provided opening exercises to get the group warmed up and brains stimulated. The session then provided information on three topic areas: normal brain function and normal age-related changes; brain diseases and disorders; and successful aging.

Panelists included Geoff Ganter, Ph.D., professor of Biology in the UNE College of Arts and Sciences; Rob Anderson, M.D., Emergency medicine and geriatrics, Maine Medical Center, assistant professor with Tufts Medical School and visiting lecturer with the UNE College of Osteopathic Medicine (UNE COM); and Stacey Thieme, D.O., director of UNE COM’s preceptor program. The moderator was Marilyn R., Gugliucci, Ph.D., professor and director of Geriatrics Education and Research at UNE COM.

The event sponsored by the Dana Foundation - Dana Alliance for Brain Initiatives, Maine AARP and University of New England and was organized by Edward Bilsky, Ph.D., and Danielle Deason, B.A., M.B.A. of the UNE Office of Research and Scholarship and Center for Excellence in the Neurosciences.

To learn more about the University of New England’s Center for Excellence in the Neurosciences, visit www.une.edu/research/cen

To apply, visit www.une.edu/admissions

The audience did seated exercises to start the program
The audience did seated exercises to start the program

About the University of New England

The University of New England is Maine’s largest independent university, with two beautiful coastal campuses in Maine, a one-of-a-kind study abroad campus in Tangier, Morocco, and an array of flexible, accredited online degrees. In an uncommonly welcoming and supportive community, we offer hands-on learning, empowering students to make a positive impact in a world full of challenges. The state’s top provider of health professionals, we are home to Maine’s only medical college, Maine’s only dental college, a variety of other interprofessionally aligned health care degree programs, as well as nationally recognized programs for marine science degrees, natural and social sciences degrees, arts and humanities degrees, and business degrees.