In a remarkable development, Kelsey Martin, Executive Vice President of Autism and Neuroscience at the Simons Foundation, has been elected to the 2024 class of new members by the National Academy of Sciences (NAS). This prestigious recognition honors Martin’s outstanding contributions to original research alongside 120 national and 24 international members being honored this year.
The NAS, established in 1863 under a congressional charter, is a private nonprofit organization that elects scientists to its membership based on peer recognition. The academy collaborates with the National Academy of Engineering and the National Academy of Medicine to provide science, engineering, and health policy advice to the federal government and other organizations.
Martin took up her role at the Simons Foundation in September 2021, where she leads the Simons Foundation Autism Research Initiative (SFARI) and neuroscience collaborations. Prior to joining the foundation, Martin held positions at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), serving as dean of the David Geffen School of Medicine, chair of the UCLA Department of Biological Chemistry, and professor in the Department of Biological Chemistry and the Department of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences.
During her tenure as dean, Martin established innovative programs in precision health and computational medicine while leading interdisciplinary research initiatives that bridged basic and clinical research. Her research focuses on long-term synaptic plasticity and memory regulation in neurons in response to experience. Martin’s lab has made significant discoveries related to signaling molecules involved in synaptic transmission and translation mechanisms impacting synapse formation and plasticity.