NMSS re-funds Postdoctoral Fellowship Training Grant in MS at Kessler Foundation

The National Multiple Sclerosis Society (NMSS) has re-funded a Postdoctoral Fellowship Training Grant in Multiple Sclerosis (MS) at Kessler Foundation. The total award is $383,000 for five years beginning on July 1st, 2012. This grant provides advanced training in rehabilitation research for scientists working toward careers dedicated to improving the lives of people with MS. Three postdoctoral fellows will be funded by the new grant.

John DeLuca, PhD, VP of Research & Training serves as principal investigator for both the original grant as well as the newly funded proposal. Dr. DeLuca, PhD, oversees Kessler Foundation's six research laboratories, which conduct physical and cognitive research in spinal cord injury, brain injury, and stroke, as well as MS. Dr. DeLuca was the director of Neuropsychology and Neuroscience Research at Kessler Foundation for 18 years as well as for its post-doctoral fellowship program in neuropsychology. His collaborative work in cognitive rehabilitation extends to Italy and China. He has obtained more than $26 million in grant funding to support his work and is the editor of four recent books, including the 'Encyclopedia of Clinical Neuropsychology.'

This new NMSS grant is one of several external and internal grants that fund Kessler Foundation's Post-doctoral Fellowship program, which has a >20-year history of successful research training for young scientists. All Fellows are required to submit an NIH grant application, submit at least one manuscript for publication for each year of training and present their research at national conferences. The goal of the program is to nurture fellows' enthusiasm for rehabilitation research by providing them with mentors who teach the necessary skills and methodology in science and also serve as role models for success in the field of MS rehabilitation.