Who We Are

MRRI brings together a diverse group of talented scientists from a variety of scientific fields to conduct world-class research in a supportive and collaborative environment.

Institute Scientists
Dr. Edwards is director of the Moss Rehabilitation Research Institute and oversees the Human Motor Recovery Laboratory.
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Dr. Rabinowitz is associate director of MRRI and director of the Brain Injury Neuropsychology Laboratory, which studies the neurobiological and psychosocial factors that influence recovery from traumatic brain injury (TBI) across the spectrum of injury severity.
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Dr. Antonucci, a clinical researcher and speech-language pathologist who specializes in aphasia and aphasia rehabilitation, is director of the MossRehab Aphasia Center.
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Dr. Buxbaum is director of the Cognition and Action Laboratory, which focuses on studying the behavioral and brain bases of skilled action and object use in healthy and stroke participants.
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Dr. Kantak is the director of the Neuroplasticity and Motor Behavior Laboratory, which focuses on understanding the neural and behavioral basis of control and learning of movements skills with a long-term goal to enhance motor recovery in patients with neurological disorders through innovative application of behavioral and brain stimulation techniques.
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Marja-Liisa Mailend is the director of the Speech and Language Recovery Laboratory, which studies neurogenic communication disorders and impairments of phonological encoding and speech motor planning.
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Dr. Erica Middleton is director of the Language and Learning Lab, which focuses on language production, learning and language change, and rehabilitation of acquired language impairment (aphasia).
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Amanda Therrien is director of the Sensorimotor Learning Laboratory, which seeks to improve motor training protocols for patients with neurological disorders.
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Dr. Venkatesan is the director of the Brain Trauma and Behavior Laboratory (BraTBehavior), which studies the cognitive and functional health of individuals with a history of chronic TBI and older individuals with recent-onset TBI.
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Dr. Wong is the director of the Cognitive-Motor Learning Laboratory, which investigates interactions between the motor system and cognition that influence how people learn skilled movements.
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Scientists Emeriti
Dr. Whyte is the founding director of MRRI. He maintained a clinical research laboratory until 2019 and remains actively involved in mentoring, scientific collaboration, and methodology-related activities.
Dr. Schwartz is co-founder of MRRI. For many years, she headed the Language and Aphasia Laboratory, which conducts behavioral and brain studies of language breakdown and recovery in people with aphasia.
Ms. Fink retired in 2016 as clinical director of the MossRehab Aphasia Center, which meets the long-term communication and psychosocial needs of individuals who have been affected by aphasia.
Dr. Hart conducted extensive research on TBI outcomes and treatments, with special focus on long-term psychosocial outcomes and treatments involving cognitive and emotional self-regulation. For many years, she directed the Moss Traumatic Brain Injury Model System. She also contributed to projects focused on specifying the active ingredients of rehabilitation and enhancing the rigor of treatment research.
Scientists in Residence
Gabriella Vigliocco, PhD
Dr. Vigliocco is professor of psychology at University College London, where she directs the Language and Cognition Laboratory and co-directs the Deafness, Cognition, and Language research center.
Lyn Turkstra, PhD, CCC-SLP, BC-NCD(A)
Dr. Turkstra is professor in the School of Rehabilitation Science at McMaster Univeristy, where she is a faculty member in the Neuroscience Graduate Program and the Centre for Advanced Research in Experimental and Applied Linguistics.
Post-Doctoral Fellows
Cory Potts, PhD, Post-Doctoral Fellow, (Cory.Potts@jefferson.edu)
Simon Thibault, PhD, Post-Doctoral Fellow, (Simon.Thibault@jefferson.edu)
Amy Lebkuecher, PhD, Post-Doctoral Fellow, (Amy.Lebkuecher@jefferson.edu)
Yingxue Tian, PhD, Post-Doctoral Fellow, (yingxue.tian@jefferson.edu)
Anna Krason, PhD, Post-Doctoral Fellow, (Anna.Krason@jefferson.edu)
Jonathan Wood, PhD, Post-Doctoral Fellow, (Jonathan.Wood@jefferson.edu)

Scientific Advisory Board
Director, Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine; Professor of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine.
Director, Cerebrovascular Division of Neurology, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine; Professor of Neurology, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine.
Appointed Professor Emeritus, Department of Neurology, University of Florida.
President and Director of Research, Haskins Laboratory; Associate Professor, Department of Linguistics, Yale University
Associate Director, Finance and Administration, Glenn Biggs Institute for Alzheimer’s and Neurodegenerative Diseases, University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio.
Bert C. Wiley Professor of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation; Professor of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, The Ohio State University
Associate Professor, School of Biological Sciences, Georgia Institute of Technology
Administration
Anthony Nazar
Technology Coordinator
Mary Czerniak
Program Coordinator/ Administrative Assistant
Stephen Faha
Database Coordinator
Grace Loscalzo
IRB Analyst
Lauren McLaughlin
Administrative Coordinator
Kevin Whelihan
Administrator