To celebrate the Vanderbilt Kennedy Center’s 50th anniversary as one of the nation’s original Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities Research Centers, the VKC will host its 2015 Science Day on Tuesday, Sept. 29, from noon to 5 p.m. at the Vanderbilt Student Life Center.
Renowned neuroscientist Pasko Rakic will present the 2015 Science Day keynote address “Neuronal Migration: Relevance to Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities.” Rakic is the Dorys McConnell Duberg Professor of Neuroscience and Neurology, chair and professor of neurobiology and director of the Kavli Institute for Neuroscience at Yale University.
Following the keynote, a panel of past and present VKC directors will discuss “Looking Back and Looking Forward: The Evolution of Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities Research.”
As is Science Day tradition, more than 100 presenters—from undergraduate students to postdoctoral fellows—have submitted posters of recent research to be viewed by their peers, faculty and the public, and some presenters will enter their posters in competition. Cash awards will be given to the best undergraduate, graduate and postdoctoral posters in each of the three theme areas: systems neuroscience, cellular and molecular neuroscience, and clinical, behavioral and intervention research.
Award winners will be announced on Wednesday, Sept. 30, on the VKC website as well as in Oct. 5’s “Monday Morning Message,” the VKC weekly e-newsletter.
Registration for VKC Science Day is free and open to the public. To register or to view the schedule, visit the VKC Events Calendar page.
For more information about the Vanderbilt Kennedy Center, visit vkc.mc.vanderbilt.edu.
by Elizabeth Turner