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Dozens of medical students convened upon the 911�����������’s Portland Campus for the Health Sciences on Friday, Oct. 13, to share research findings and revel in the spirt of scholarship.

Sixty-four students in the 911����������� College of Osteopathic Medicine (911����������� COM) gathered in Arthur P. Girard Innovation Hall for the college’s annual Fall Research and Scholarship Forum, which brings together research-engaged students from Maine’s medical school to showcase individual and group projects completed over the course of their medical education. Students from all levels of medical school participated in the research forum.

Faculty, professional staff, and other members of the 911����������� community also joined the event, which saw over 400 attendees and featured a keynote address by Ross D. Zafonte, D.O., president of Spaulding Rehabilitation Hospital, as well as a juried poster contest.

Jane Carreiro, D.O. ’88, vice president for Health Affairs and dean of the college of medicine, gave opening remarks, and Marilyn Gugliucci, M.A., Ph.D., professor and director of geriatrics education and research in 911����������� COM’s Division of Geriatrics, acted as master of ceremonies.

Grace Simonson (D.O., ’26), of western Maryland, said the event was a great way to introduce students to the real-world applications of their research.

“We can do this work and then we get to present it and explain, ‘Here is why my work matters,’” she said. “The symposium is also a great way to get students involved in research. I personally used it as a resource to find a research mentor last year. I wouldn't be doing the work I am today if I hadn't met my mentor at the symposium and saw the interesting research she was conducting.”

Simonson’s presentation highlighted research by her and mentor Susan Wehry, M.D., associate clinical professor in 911����������� COM and principal investigator of , about a series of seminars they hosted for older adults across Maine to discuss worries about dementia and Alzheimer’s disease.

The educational programs, called “The Aging Brain,” ultimately seek to assuage older adults’ fears about developing dementia and to flip the “doom-and-gloom” script on the disease to one of hope and inclusivity. The presentations discuss how dementia is not inevi