Reappointment of John A. Dani, PhD, as Chair of the Department of Neuroscience


May 17, 2019

To:Penn Medicine Faculty, Students and Staff

From:J. Larry Jameson, MD, PhD
Jonathan A. Epstein, MD


We are pleased to announce the reappointment of Dr. John Dani for a second six-year term as Chair of the Department of Neuroscience. The reappointment follows a review process that included an extensive self-study, followed by an internal committee review and an external review by three leaders in the field.

Established in 1992, the Department of Neuroscience is recognized nationally and internationally for the high quality of its basic and translational scholarship. The Department’s distinguished faculty utilize cutting-edge techniques to address a wide range of topics in modern neuroscience. In addition to their own projects, faculty members supervise research being carried out by an outstanding group of doctoral students and post-doctoral fellows.

Dr. Dani has demonstrated the ability to attract world-class scientists to Penn. Under his leadership, the Department has recruited eight new faculty members in the past six years, including Penn’s two PIK professors in neuroscience. Overall, there has been a substantial increase in research funding and publications in high-impact journals.

In the education domain, the Department is deeply committed to graduate training. Through its participation in the Neuroscience Graduate Group (with approximately 110 students from multiple departments in five schools across the University), the Department has maintained a top-ranked neuroscience graduate program.

Dr. Dani has also fostered collaboration in the campus-wide neuroscience community through such initiatives as the “Year of” seminar series, supported by the Mahoney Institute for the Neurosciences, which he also directs.

The Department is well-positioned to excel over the next six years. We look forward to working with Dr. Dani during his second term to foster continued progress and innovation, and ask that you join us in congratulating him on this reappointment.