New Clemson Endowed Chair to Focus on Aging, Cognition

Clemson University's College of Behavioral, Social, and Health Sciences (CBSHS) has established a new endowed chair position to research aging and its effects on issues related to brain functioning, reports the Clemson Newsstand . Lesley A. Ross has been appointed the college's first SmartLIFE Endowed Chair in Aging and Cognition. She will be a tenured faculty member in the psychology department, and will work collaboratively across the CBSHS and the university on research into aging and cognition. Ross also will be associate director for the Clemson University Institute for Engaged Aging, and have dedicated laboratory space at the Oconee County Campus of Prisma Health. She noted that such endowed chair positions are increasingly vital on account of multidisciplinary requirements in the field, and the growing global population of older adults. This behooves proportional changes in healthcare and technology. "My research, and the work of this position, focuses on keeping older adults happy and independent as long as possible while fighting the negative stereotypes associated with aging." Ross declared. She also emphasized the importance of researchers and students engaging with older populations, most critically for translating research findings into usable products that help the community.