Wise Young, a world authority on spinal cord injury and founding director of the W.M. Keck Center for Collaborative Neuroscience at Rutgers, was named the first holder of the Richard H. Shindell Chair in Neuroscience October 30 at an investiture ceremony in Kirkpatrick Chapel.
Shindell, a 1957 Rutgers College alumnus, donated $3 million to support the pursuit of a cure for spinal cord injury. The gift enabled the establishment of the endowed chair in the Division of Life Sciences. Before his retirement, Shindell was a vice president at T. Rowe Price, an investment management firm.
Young has served with distinction as the director of the W.M. Keck Center for Collaborative Neuroscience and as a professor of cell biology and neuroscience. He is also an articulate and passionate spokesperson on stem cell research, a potential source of nerve cell regeneration therapies for damaged spinal cord tissue.
At the investiture ceremony, President Richard L. McCormick recounted the history of endowed chairs in academia over the centuries and, in introducing Shindell, cited both “the generosity of the donor and the brilliance of the recipient.”
Shindell told the investiture audience of nearly 150 that he was deeply moved by the “Wall of Hope” at the Keck Center – photos of people with spinal cord injury. “The people pictured are an inspiration to all who work at this very special place, and I knew I had to do whatever I could to support this work,” Shindell said.
He said he left the Keck Center that day overwhelmed by his good fortune. “I had been given the opportunity to further research that could someday be life-changing for millions of people.”
Speaking of Young, Shindell reprised a comment he had made at a fundraising event. “When we observe his science, when we feel his love, when we experience his teaching, and we understand his caring, how can any of us give any less than our fullest support?”
Ken Breslauer, vice president for health and science partnerships at Rutgers, introduced Wise Young at the ceremony as “a prophet, a pioneer, and the heart and soul of the spinal cord injury community.”
In thanking Shindell, Young explained that, “We do science not for science’s sake, but for the people who benefit from it. What we do must go beyond the walls of the laboratory and Rutgers gave me the gift of freedom to create a center for the people for whom the work is being done.”
Distinguished members of the spinal cord injury community and their families attending the investiture ceremony included Krista Adamson, Keck Center research associate; Dr. Fred Ferrari who has endowed a postdoctoral fellowship at the Keck Center accompanied by his wife Roseann; Middlesex Country Surrogate (judicial officer) Kevin Hoagland; and Morgan Stanley Vice President Henry Stifel, III.
As an undergraduate at Rutgers, Shindell pursued studies in economics and participated in the Rutgers Glee Club. Since graduation, he has been a member of the Rutgers Alumni Association and through financial donations has supported other university activities, including the Glee Club and the athletic department.