2019 Ann Gentile Memorial Conference

Sunil K. Agrawal received a Ph.D. degree in Mechanical Engineering from Stanford University in 1990. He is currently a Professor and Director of Robotics and Rehabilitation (ROAR) Laboratory at Columbia University, located both in engineering and medical campuses of Columbia University. He has published more than 500 journal and conference papers. Dr. Agrawal is a Fellow of the ASME and AIMBE. His honors include a NSF Presidential Faculty Fellowship from the White House in 1994, a Bessel Prize from Germany in 2003, and a Humboldt US Senior Scientist Award in 2007. He is a recipient of 2016 Machine Design Award from ASME for “seminal contributions to design of robotic exoskeletons for gait training of stroke patients” and 2016 Mechanisms and Robotics Award from the ASME for “cumulative contributions and being an international leading figure in mechanical design and robotics”. He is a recipient of several Best Paper awards in ASME and IEEE sponsored robotics conferences. He has held positions of a Distinguished Visiting Professor at Hanyang University in Korea, a Professor of Robotics at the University of Ulster in Northern Ireland, and a Visiting Professor at the Biorobotics Institute of SSSA in Pisa. He has successfully directed PhD theses of more than 25 students.

Diane L. Damiano, PT, PhD, FAPTA is a Senior Investigator at the National Institutes of Health in Bethesda, Maryland USA and Chief of the Functional and Applied Biomechanics Section in the Rehabilitation Medicine Department. Her research focuses on the investigation of brain and muscle mechanisms underlying motor coordination and performance in individuals with and without cerebral palsy. Her laboratory is also involved in the design and investigation of activity-based rehabilitation programs and devices to promote optimal motor functioning and enhance muscle and neural plasticity in cerebral palsy. She has over 120 journal publications and serves as an Associate Editor for Neurorehabilitation and Neural Repair. She was the first physical therapist to be elected President of the American Academy for Cerebral Palsy and Developmental Medicine and has also been President of the Gait and Clinical Movement Analysis Society. She is a Catherine Worthingham Fellow of the American Physical Therapy Association.

Andy Gordon has a broad background in neurophysiology and biomechanics and have extensive clinical and research expertise involving children with cerebral palsy. He has been studying hand motor control in healthy individuals and individuals with CP for over 20 years. In 1996 he founded the Center for Cerebral Palsy Research at Teachers College, Columbia University. The Center places emphasis on understanding the mechanisms underlying motor disorders associated with CP, and developing evidence-based treatment approaches targeting these disorders using motor learning approaches. In the last decade more than 250 children with CP have participated in hand treatment day camps. He is a fellow in the National Academy of Kinesiology, and has more than 130 peer-reviewed papers.

Chris Hass is an Associate Provost and Professor. His lab studies the neuromechanical control of walking and postural control. Most of his work has strong clinical relevance with particular emphasis on persons with movement disorders. Combing both basic and applied work he aims to improve understanding of neuromechanical mechanisms so that intervention programs (behavioral and surgical) for improving quality of life may be optimized.

Dr. Teresa Liu-Ambrose, PhD, PT, is a Professor in the Department of Physical Therapy, Co-Director of the Centre for Hip Health and Mobility, and Canada Research Chair in Physical Activity, Mobility, and Cognitive Health. Dr. Liu-Ambrose is an associate member of the Djavad Mowafaghian Centre for Brain Health. Dr. Liu-Ambrose’s research focuses on understanding the role of exercise in promoting cognitive and mobility outcomes in older adults. Her research findings have been implemented into clinical practice, community programs, and influenced international practice guidelines to promote healthy aging.

Jacqueline Montes, PT, EdD, NCS is an Assistant Professor of Rehabilitation and Regenerative Medicine at Columbia University. Dr. Montes is a licensed physical therapist and certified by the American Board of Physical Therapy Specialties as a neurological clinical specialist since 2005. Dr. Montes has worked at the Columbia University Irving Medical Center her entire career, first joining the Physical Therapy Department in 1994. She was later a member of the multidisciplinary team at the Eleanor and Lou Gehrig MDA ALS Research Center and the SMA Clinical Research Center.

Dr. Montes is currently research faculty in the Program for Physical Therapy as well as the Motor Neuron Center. Dr. Montes obtained her Bachelors degree and physical therapy certification at Hunter College in New York. She also received an MA in Motor Learning and Motor Control and a Doctorate of Education in the Movement Sciences at Teachers College, Columbia University, where her research topics focused on gait, fatigue and clinical outcome measures in neuromuscular disease. Her work encompasses several areas including the clinical evaluation of adults and children with diverse neuromuscular diseases including ALS and SMA. Her research has focused on understanding of the natural history of these diseases as well as defining weakness and fatigue as a symptom complex that defines the underlying disease mechanism.

Lori Quinn is Associate Professor in the Department of Biobehavioral Sciences at Teachers College, Columbia University. Dr. Quinn holds joint appointments as Adjunct Associate Professor of Rehabilitation and Regenerative Medicine (Physical Therapy) at Columbia University Medical Center, as well as Senior Research Fellow in the Department of Physiotherapy at Cardiff University, Cardiff, UK.  Dr. Quinn’s research has focused on developing evidence and guidelines for targeted physical interventions in neurodegenerative diseases, and in particular for people with Huntington's disease and Parkinson’s disease. Prior to joining TC in 2015, Dr. Quinn was a Senior Research Fellow at Cardiff University, Cardiff, UK.   Dr. Quinn’s clinical and research work spans areas of motor learning and control, movement system diagnoses and movement analysis, goal setting, and functional outcomes measures.

Ashwini K. Rao, EdD, OTR, FAOTA is Professor of Rehabilitation & Regenerative Medicine at Columbia University. He trained as an occupational therapist, and has received his EdD in Movement Sciences from Teachers College, Columbia University and a completed post-doctoral fellowship in Computational Motor Control from Johns Hopkins University. He has over 25 years clinical experience in neurological rehabilitation and has been part of the Huntington Disease Center since 2002 and the Center for Excellence in Alzheimer’s Disease since 2015. His research is focused on developing quantitative methods to detect functional motor impairments in aging and degenerative disorders, examining mechanisms underlying motor impairments, and understanding the functional consequences of motor impairments. He has received funding from the National Institute of Health (NICHD, NCATS), National Science Foundation, Huntington Disease Society of America in addition to industry funding. He serves on study sections at the NSF and has served as the Associate Editor of the American Journal of Occupational Therapy.

Darcy Reisman, PT, PhD is Professor and Associate Chair in Physical Therapy and Professor in the Biomechanics and Movement Science Program at the University of Delaware (UD). She has been a Physical Therapist for over 25 years and received her PhD from the University of Delaware in 2003 and completed post-doctoral training at the Kennedy Krieger Institute/Johns Hopkins School of Medicine. She is the Academic Director of the Neurologic and Older Adult PT Clinic, a full service clinic that is part of the PT Department at UD. She is faculty in both the UD-Johns Hopkins Neurologic Physical Therapy Residency and UD Geriatric Physical Therapy Residency programs. The overall goal of Dr. Reisman’s research is to develop scientifically-based therapies to advance physical rehabilitation and recovery after stroke. Dr. Reisman’s research has been continuously funded for the past 15 years through federal agencies and foundations including the American Heart Association and the National Institutes of Health. She has more than 70 peer-reviewed publications and is an Associate Editor and Editorial Board Member for some of the top rehabilitation journals.