From Left: Previous Alumni Day speakers: Former White House Counsel John Dean with Vice Chair of Education Charles Flippen and his wife, Jennifer Haley, MD. Susan Schneider Williams (widow of Robin Williams who suffered from Lewy body disease) with residents.
The Alumni Day and Collins Lecture are key aspects of our scholarly and community-building activities each year. As an academic department, education is one of the most important aspects of our mission. The department currently trains over 200 neurology and neuroscience residents, fellows and post-doctoral students. Each year we invite our alumni family back to enjoy the annual Collins Lecture and poster presentations by current trainees.
Alumni Day usually takes place the last Wednesday of May each year and, in addition to the Collins Lecture and poster presentations, includes a reception and dinner with a speaker from a field outside of neurology.
Robert C. Collins, MD was Chairman of the UCLA Department of Neurology from 1988-2002. Under Dr. Collins' leadership, the department grew enormously, both in size and scientific stature. Throughout the course of his 15 years of leadership, the quality of education in the department advanced to where we now compete for trainees with only the finest institutions in the United States. At the time of his retirement as Chair, the department established the Collins Lecture in honor of his unwavering commitment to scholastic excellence in neurological research and education.
Currently, Dr. Collins and his wife Valerie are enjoying retirement by spending the winter months in Indio, California, and the summer months in Sisters, Oregon. Dr. Collins is pursuing his interests in literary matters by writing novels and enjoying his two grandchildren.
