UCSF’s innovative, collaborative approach to patient care, research and education spans disciplines across the life sciences, making it a world leader in scientific discovery and its translation to improving health.
Gloria Aguirre is an artist and community advocate who joined the Memory and Aging Center in 2019. She is an Atlantic Fellow for Health Equity based at George Washington University in Washington D.C. and serves as Artistic Director of Creative Minds, the San Francisco community arts for brain health initiative, and Community Engagement Manager for the Community Outreach Program at the MAC.
Cecilia Alagappan has been at UCSF Memory and Aging Center (MAC) since 2011 and is a clinical and research nurse. She has over 30 years of nursing experience caring for elderly patients with various medical conditions, including those with Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias, cardiac disease and cancers needing home infusion therapy and pain management. As a nurse educator in a home care agency, Cecilia trained caregivers to care for patients with dementia, including assisting the family with behavior management and activities of daily living.
Rea obtained her BA degree in psychology (Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Greece). As a bachelor thesis student, she was introduced to the fascinating world of research by undertaking a behavioral study probing the association between cheating, creativity and moral reasoning. The question which psychological mechanisms tilt our moral compass sparked her interest. However, pieces were definitely missing from understanding such a perplex topic in depth.
Jorge Archila is an Assistant Clinical Research Coordinator at the Memory and Aging Center in the Department of Neurology at the University of San Francisco, California. He has a BS degree in psychology and BA degree in psychopedagogy. He is a Bilingual Certified Specialist in Psychometry.
Jorge moved from Guatemala in 2011 and began working in psychometry, administering psychological test batteries in English and Spanish in a neuropsychological private practice in San Francisco.
Andrea Argouarch is an assistant specialist in the Kao Lab. She graduated from California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo, with an MS degree in biomedical engineering and a specialization in stem cell research.
Dr. Kelly Atkins is a Clinical Neuropsychologist from Melbourne Australia, completing postdoctoral research at the UCSF Memory and Aging Center in the Department of Neurology. She graduated from Monash University in 2021 with a doctorate in Clinical Neuropsychology and completed her registrar training at St Vincent's Hospital Melbourne, before moving to Weill Cornell Medicine on a postdoctoral Fulbright Fellowship. Kelly's research interests focus on the measurement of cognitive and neuropsychiatric changes in people with atypical neurodegenerative conditions.
Michelle received her master’s degree in Lifespan Developmental Psychology with a specialization in Gerontology from Louisiana State University. She has over 25 years of experience working with people with dementia and their care partners as a researcher, consultant, educator and program planner. Her areas of expertise include timely detection, early intervention and improving health care quality for people with dementia.
