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Dr. Philip A. DeFina of International Brain Research Foundation Joins Montgomery Academy Board of Trustees

Posted on: Thursday, 11 June 2009, 09:14 CDT

Chester Township scientist, author and lecturer lends his expertise to special ed school

MENDHAM TOWNSHIP, N.J., June 11 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Montgomery Academy's Board of Trustees voted unanimously during its May meeting to name Dr. Philip A. DeFina to the Board of the nonprofit, state approved school.

Dr. DeFina founded the nonprofit International Brain Research Foundation and serves as both its Chief Executive Officer and Chief Scientific Officer. He has been a Guest Researcher at the National Institute of Health and a member of the International Neuroscience Subcommittee of the World Health Organization. A pioneer in developing and directing clinical training programs in the cognitive neurosciences, Dr. DeFina has worked to develop groundbreaking treatments for traumatic brain injury, coma, Alzheimer's, autism and Parkinson's. DeFina, himself an Army veteran, has revived over forty patients from minimally conscious or vegetative states including five injured U.S. soldiers. He has worked in collaboration with the Department of Defense and is the chief consultant for the traumatic brain injury program at Kessler Institute for Rehabilitation. His treatment protocols include electronic brain stimulation and hyperbaric oxygen induction, among other therapies, to help balance the electrical and chemical activity in the brain.

"It is a great honor to have Phil join Montgomery Academy's Board," said J. Anthony Manger of Norris, McLaughlin & Marcus, P.A., who chairs the Board of Trustees and also serves as an officer of its Foundation. "Phil's powerful and cutting edge work in neuroscience and brain health makes him particularly well suited to guide this gem of a school as it enters its 40th year of service to classified and autistic students. We are absolutely thrilled that he's accepted our invitation to join the Board and look forward to partnering with him to promote his vitally important brain research. Phil has written texts on educational neuropsychology and assessment and specializes in learning disabilities, psychiatric and autism spectrum disorders which affect Montgomery Academy students and many youngsters in our state."

Montgomery Academy delivers individualized instruction, counseling, transition, performing arts, athletics, technology, social skills and summer programs to students from over fifty sending districts in eight New Jersey counties. Its mission is to support and nurture youngsters who have emotional, behavioral and learning challenges that have not been met in conventional public school settings. It's a place where students can truly be themselves -- guided toward self-confidence, self-governance and self-knowledge in a reassuring atmosphere of trust and mutual respect. Making choices, cultivating interests: these are at the heart of the Montgomery Academy experience. To learn more about how Montgomery Academy creates opportunity for students with disabilities, please visit www.montgomeryacademyonline.org or call the school at 908.234.2840.

SOURCE Montgomery Academy Foundation

Source: PR Newswire

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