Schedule & Keynote

Keynote Speaker: Marie Banich, Ph.D.

Dr. Banich is Distinguished Professor of Psychology and Neuroscience and Executive Director of the Intermountain Neuroimaging Center (INC) at University of Colorado-Boulder. Her research specializes in using brain imaging techniques to understand the neural systems that allow us to direct our attention and our actions so that we can prioritize, organize, and target our behavior in a goal-oriented manner, abilities often referred to as executive function. She investigates these issues both in normal individuals as well as clinical populations, such as individuals with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder and adolescents with severe substance and conduct problems. She also takes a developmental perspective, examining how executive functions mature during adolescence. Dr. Banich is one of two co-principal investigators for the Colorado site of the ground-breaking Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development study www.abcdstudy.org, a 10-year national study of over 11,000 youth across the nation at 21 different sites focused on the interaction between brain development, genetics, and environmental influences.

Dr. Banich's research findings have been published in leading journals, including the journal Science. She is co-author of a textbook, entitled Cognitive Neuroscience, now in its fourth edition published by Cambridge University Press. Among her other professional experiences, Prof. Banich has been a member of the MacArthur Foundation on Adolescent Development and Juvenile Justice, a Fulbright Senior Scholar in Verona, Italy, has received a James McKeen Cattell Sabbatical Award, and served as the Director of the Institute of Cognitive Science at the University of Colorado Boulder for twelve years from 2004 to 2016. In 2025, she was recognized with the Distinguished Career Contributions Award from the Cognitive Neuroscience Society.