UMSOM Neuroscientist, Dr. Alan Faden, to Lead Research Collaborations Across University Campuses

New Role as UM School of Medicine Associate Dean of Trans-Campus Research Advancement Builds on Current Bi-Campus Research Collaborations at Center for Sports Medicine, Health and Human Performance

University of Maryland School of Medicine Dean E. Albert Reece announced today that Alan I. Faden, MD, the David S. Brown Professor in Trauma and Professor of Anesthesiology at the University of Maryland School of Medicine (UM SOM), and Director of the UM SOM Shock Trauma and Anesthesiology Research center (STAR), has been appointed to the new position of Associate Dean for Trans-Campus Research Advancement at the UM SOM. In this role, Dr. Faden will identify, encourage and direct opportunities for SOM faculty to collaborate widely across the USM campuses with colleagues and investigators, especially at UM Baltimore County (UMBC) and UM, College Park- consistent with the objectives of the MPowering the State Initiative.

In conjunction with this role, he has also been named a University Professor at the University of Maryland, College Park, which recognizes his role as a faculty member and professor on both the College Park and University of Maryland, Baltimore campuses.

“To better address the most significant research questions, we must effectively harness the power of interdisciplinary collaboration and teamwork,” said Mary Ann Rankin, PhD, Senior Vice President and Provost, University of Maryland, College Park.

“Dr. Faden’s broad research and administrative leadership experience make him particularly well suited to facilitate research partnerships across our campuses. In his new role he will play an important part in helping the University achieve even greater pre-eminence as a lead innovator institution.”

The additional position stems from Dr. Faden’s instrumental role in working across boundaries to build and co-lead a major research agenda for the new bi-campus University of Maryland Center for Sports Medicine, Health and Human Performance, initially supported by $3 million through the MPower Initiative.

As Scientific Co-Director of the Center, with University of Maryland, College Park Biology Professor, Dr. Elizabeth Quinlan, he will help to lead development of multi-disciplinary research and treatment that focuses on a range of areas including concussion/ traumatic brain injury, and related neuroscience; effects of exercise, dietary alterations and cognitive training on functional recovery and rehabilitation; biomechanics, exoskeleton-robotic treatments; and biomechanics/orthopaedics.

“As we continue to expand our profile as a thriving research university, we want to further leverage interdisciplinary collaborations across the University System of Maryland to enhance innovation and discovery,” said Freeman A. Hrabowski, III, President, University of Maryland, Baltimore County (UMBC). “As both a respected researcher and experienced leader, Dr. Faden is well positioned to facilitate new cross-campus collaborations that build on our joint research efforts with UM School of Medicine and that lead to innovations that move our State forward.”

Dr. Faden joined the SOM in 2009 after 18 years at Georgetown University, where he served in a variety of roles including Dean of Research & Graduate Education in the SOM, Scientific Director of the Medical Center, and founding Director of the Georgetown Institute for Cognitive and Computational Sciences. He is an internationally recognized neurologist and leader in neurotrauma, with nearly 400 peer-reviewed papers. Dr. Faden’s present research focuses on the pathobiology and treatment of traumatic brain and spinal cord injuries, mechanisms of cell death, neuroinflammation, central pain and drug discovery. He is currently PI or MPI on 4 RO1 and a P30 grant from NIH, and 2 DOD grants, as well as serving as Co-I of two other RO1 grants and a P30 grant.  Annual extramural funding is $4.17 million.  Two of the MPI NIH grants involve collaborations with the UM School of Nursing and the UM School of Dentistry.

In addition to his primary appointment in Anesthesiology, Dr. Faden holds secondary appointments in Anatomy & Neurobiology, Neurosurgery, Psychiatry and Neurology in the SOM, as well as in the SON, SOP and in the Kinesiology Department at UMCP. He served as the founding President of the National Neurotrauma Society, President of the American Society for Experimental NeuroTherapeutics, and founding Editor of the journal Neurotherapeutics. He is a fellow of the American College of Physicians, American Academy of Neurology, and the American Neurological Association.

“Trans-disciplinary investigation is the future of research, and is also the future of the University of Maryland School of Medicine as one of the nation’s pre-eminent academic research institutions,” said Dean Reece, who is Vice President, Medical Affairs, University of Maryland, and the John Z. and Akiko K. Bowers Distinguished Professor and Dean of the School of Medicine “With Alan Faden’s appointment to this new position, along with leadership at UMBC and UM College Park,  we will be better able to bridge the gap between our campuses, and provide even greater opportunities for our researchers to create and leverage novel breakthroughs and discoveries.” 

About the University of Maryland School of Medicine

The University of Maryland School of Medicine was chartered in 1807 and is the first public medical school in the United States. It continues today as an innovative leader in accelerating innovation and discovery in medicine. The School of Medicine is the founding school of the University of Maryland and is an integral part of the 11-campus University System of Maryland. Located at the University of Maryland, Baltimore, the School of Medicine works closely with the University of Maryland Medical Center and Medical System to provide a research-intensive, academic and clinically based education. With 43 academic departments, centers and institutes and a faculty of more than 3,000 physicians and research scientists plus more than $400 million in extramural funding, the School is regarded as one of the leading biomedical research institutions in the U.S. with top-tier faculty and programs in cancer, brain science, surgery and transplantation, trauma and emergency medicine, vaccine development and human genomics, among other centers of excellence. The School is not only concerned with the health of the citizens of Maryland and the nation, but also has a global presence, with research and treatment facilities in more than 35 countries around the world.

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Faculty Profile: Alan I. Faden, MD