People

Joel Kramer, PsyD

Director of Neuropsychology
Healthy Aging Lab Principal Investigator
Neurology

Dr. Kramer is a Professor of Neuropsychology in Neurology and the Director of the Memory and Aging Center Neuropsychology program. He earned his doctorate in psychology at Baylor University and completed a postdoctoral fellowship in neuropsychology at the Martinez VA hospital. Dr. Kramer is board certified in clinical neuropsychology.

Claire Cadwallader, PhD

Postdoc Scholar
Neurology

Claire is a postdoctoral fellow in neuropsychology at the UCSF Memory and Aging Center under the mentorship of Associate Professor Kaitlin Casaletto. Her research interests involve the role of lifestyle factors, such as physical activity, in supporting healthy brain ageing and protecting against neurodegenerative disease. Originally from New Zealand, she completed her PhD (Clinical Neuropsychology) at Monash University in Melbourne, Australia.

Lana Callies

Assistant Clinical Research Coordinator
Neurology

Lana is a research coordinator in Dr. Joel Kramer’s lab working primarily on the Active Mind Clinical Trial as well as the Brain Aging Network for Cognitive Health study and the Mechanisms of Executive Decline study. She graduated with a BS degree in Neurobiology, Physiology, and Behavior from UC Davis in June 2022

Kaitlin Casaletto, PhD

Assistant Professor
Affiliated Faculty
Neurology

Dr. Kaitlin Casaletto is a scientist-practitioner, board-certified neuropsychologist, and Associate Professor at the UC San Francisco Memory and Aging Center (MAC). She leads a research program identifying novel biobehavioral targets of dementia prevention. Her work has a particular lens towards sex differences and translational study designs that leverage proteomic and digital health approaches to identify targets of cognitive resilience to aging.

Coty Chen

Assistant Clinical Research Coordinator
Neurology

Coty is a research coordinator for Dr. Kaitlin Casaletto’s Activities for Aging Neurogenesis study, an intervention-based study investigating the relationship between lifestyle factors and protein markers of neural functioning. She graduated with a BS degree in Clinical Psychology from UC San Diego.

Valentina Diaz

Clinical Research Coordinator
Neurology

Valentina joined Dr. Joel Kramer’s lab as a research coordinator in September of 2021 and works primarily on the Healthy Brain Aging study as well as the Mechanisms of Executive Decline study. She graduated with a BA degree in Neurobiology from UC Berkeley in May of 2021 and has interests in neurodegenerative disorders with plans of becoming a neurosurgeon. Valentina works with the Latino Cohort Outreach program to bring in Spanish speakers or individuals who identify as Latino into our research center. 

Shubir Dutt, PhD

Clinical Fellow
Neurology

Shubir is currently a predoctoral clinical intern in the UCSF Clinical Psychology Training Program and is completing the final year of his PhD degree in Clinical Psychology at the University of Southern California. He previously worked with the Imaging Core, Kramer Lab, and 

Savannah Hallgarth

Assistant Clinical Research Coordinator
Neurology

Savannah graduated with a B.S degree in Cognitive Science from UC Santa Cruz. She works with  Dr. Joel Kramer’s lab coordinating the Novel Imaging and Biodluid Biomarkers of Small Cerebrovascular Disease study, a longitudinal project with the goal of identifying small vessel diseases of the brain that produce vascular contributions to cognitive impairment and dementia.

Carina Lo

Assistant Clinical Research Coordinator
Neurology

Carina is a research coordinator in Dr. Joel Kramer’s lab working primarily on Dr. Kramer’s Healthy Aging studies. She graduated with a BS degree in Biology from Tufts University in May 2023.

Emily Paolillo, PhD

Assistant Adjunct Professor
Neurology

Emily Paolillo, PhD, is a neuropsychology fellow at the UCSF Memory and Aging Center working under the mentorship of Dr. Kaitlin Casaletto. She obtained her PhD in Clinical Psychology (emphasis in Neuropsychology) from the SDSU/UCSD Joint Doctoral Program in 2021, which included a predoctoral clinical internship at VA Palo Alto Health Care System. Her research interests include evaluating digital health tools for early detection and monitoring of Alzheimer's disease and related dementias.

Rowan Saloner, PhD

Clinical Psychology Fellow
Neurology

Rowan previously coordinated the Longitudinal Brain Aging Program from 2015–2017, and he returned to the MAC in 2021 to pursue a doctoral internship and postdoctoral fellowship in Clinical Neuropsychology under the mentorship of Dr. Joel Kramer. His current research at the MAC focuses on genetic and fluid-based biomarkers that aid in th early detection of Alzheimer's disease and also inform cognitive resilience against brain aging.

Adam Staffaroni, PhD

Assistant Professor
Affiliated Faculty
Neurology

Dr. Staffaroni is a clinical neuropsychologist and Associate Professor at the UCSF Memory and Aging Center. His research focuses on improving early detection, prognosis, and monitoring of neurodegenerative diseases through a combination of clinical tests, neuroimaging, and blood-based biomarkers. He leads studies of remote digital data collection in frontotemporal dementia using smartphone assessments and sensor technologies.

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