Calling all Students Interested in Brain Function and Dysfunction

One of the classes offered during the spring semester is Brain Function & Dysfunction. As we were working out the timing of the class -- don't worry, it doesn't conflict with internship seminars! -- I heard an interview with Dr. Oliver Sacks on National Public Radio. You can click on the title of this blog to get to the NPR website so that you can read more and hear the interview.

Dr. Sacks is a neurologist who has written numerous books about some of the most unusual cases of neurological disorders that he has seen in his practice. You may have seen or heard of the movies Awakenings (with Robin Williams) and At First Sight (with Val Kilmer); both of these were based on real cases that were originally published by Dr. Sacks.

His books, written for a general audience and very readable, include The Man who Mistook his Wife for a Hat and An Anthropologist on Mars. I've read both and highly recommend them. Some of the cases that I found most interesting included the title case from the first book -- the patient really did think his wife was a hat! Other cases involved a woman who couldn't feel her body in space so she had trouble controlling where to place her arms and legs as she tried to navigate her everyday life; a painter who lost all ability to see color after a head trauma; and a man who lost the ability to form new long-term memories so that he was permanently "stuck" in the 1940's. He also wrote a book called Musicophilia: Tales of Music and the Brain that I have not yet read.

Dr. Sacks now has a new book The Mind's Eye in which he talks about his own struggles with a rare eye tumor and his resultant vision loss. The book includes case studies of other people whose neurological problems resulted in vision-related problems such as an inability to remember faces and visual distortions.

If you are interested in how the brain works and what happens when brain function goes awry, you might want to check out one of these books over winter break or at least listen to the radio interview that is linked to this blog.

And, check the course schedule list when it comes out -- Brain Function & Dysfunction will be there.

A Belated Welcome to our New Faculty Member

Obviously this past spring was a busy one!  With no time to write blog entries, the department faculty members kept ourselves very busy hiring a new full time faculty member.  If you haven't met her already, please stop by Plummer House and introduce yourself to Professor LeLaina Romero.

Professor Romero, a Counseling Psychologist from Teachers College, Columbia Unversity, is teaching Introductory Psychology and the Internship Seminar this semester.  Her research and practice focus on well-being and thriving, particularly in low-income urban communities. She most recently completed her pre-doctoral internship at the University of Texas at Austin Counseling and Mental Health Center, where she worked extensively with diverse LGBT students, and is beginning post-doctoral training at the Massachusetts College of Art and Design Counseling Services. As a therapist, she comes from a feminist multicultural perspective, informed in part by relational cultural theory out of the Jean Baker Miller Training Institute at Wellesley College. In short, her counseling style centers on building empowering relationships with her clients.


Professor Romero's focus on social justice in enhancing well-being and promoting thriving has led her to engage in participatory action research (PAR). This type of research engages community members or participants throughout the research process, with the belief that they are the experts on their lives and needs. This research is applied in nature and in the best of circumstances leads to actions that community members and researchers take together to enhance the community and address social problems. Her interest in PAR began when she worked as a case manager and program evaluator focusing on developmental delays and child abuse prevention after college. She has co-authored book chapters, scholarly articles, and encyclopedia entries on PAR, poverty and social class, and multicultural counseling. She has also presented at several national conferences on topics such as interdisciplinary community collaborations and mindfulness as self-care.