Allan Cole, dean of UT Social Work, has been appointed to the Parkinson’s Foundation board of directors, bringing both professional expertise in behavioral health and personal experience living with Parkinson’s disease to the national organization.
The recent appointment connects Dean Cole’s leadership at UT Social Work with the Foundation’s research and advocacy efforts. Dean Cole also serves as the deputy for medical humanities and technology in Dell Medical School, where he is also professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences. In addition, he was recently named the Robert Lee Sutherland Endowed Chair in Mental Health and Social Policy.
“It is an honor to join an organization so deeply committed to the care and support of individuals and families affected by Parkinson’s disease,” Dean Cole said. “As someone living with PD, and who has dedicated his professional life to health and social work, I’m proud to support a mission that touches so many lives across the country — including mine.”
Dean Cole brings lived experience alongside his academic credentials. Diagnosed with young-onset Parkinson’s disease eight years ago, he has authored books on living with and learning from the disease, including “Counseling Persons with Parkinson’s Disease” and “Discerning the Way: Lessons from Parkinson’s Disease.” He also developed the blog PDWise.com and two PBS documentary films, “The Only Day We Have” and “Empowered by Parkinson’s.”
The Parkinson’s Foundation has invested more than $474 million in Parkinson’s research and clinical care since 1957. The organization serves an estimated one million Americans living with Parkinson’s disease, the second-most common neurodegenerative disease after Alzheimer’s and the 14th-leading cause of death in the U.S. Nearly 90,000 new cases are diagnosed each year in the U.S.
As a board member, Dean Cole will help guide the Foundation’s strategic direction alongside other volunteer leaders committed to improving care and advancing research toward a cure.