Allison Sekuler

President & Chief Scientist, Baycrest

Allison Sekuler (FSEP, FPS, FAPS) is the Sandra A. Rotman Chair in Cognitive Neuroscience at Baycrest’s Rotman Research Institute and the University of Toronto. She is President & Chief Scientist of both the Baycrest Academy for Research and Education, and the Centre for Aging + Brain Health Innovation (supporting innovators in Ontario, across Canada, and globally). A graduate of Pomona College (bachelor’s in mathematics and psychology) and the University of California, Berkeley (PhD, psychology), Allison holds faculty positions in the Department of Psychology, Neuroscience & Behaviour at McMaster University and the Department of Psychology at the University of Toronto. Her research uses behavioural and neuroimaging approaches to understand how the brain processes visual information, with specific interests in face perception, motion processing, perceptual learning, neural plasticity, aging, electrophysiology, and neurotechnology. Her research was the first to show conclusively that older brains “rewire” themselves to compensate for functional changes. Her clinical and translational research aims to develop methods to prevent, detect, and treat age-related sensory and cognitive decline. She has scientific and industry collaborations across North America, the EU, and Asia, and her work has been published in leading international journals, including Nature, Current Biology, and the Journal of Neuroscience.

Allison chairs the Ontario Hospital Association Research & Innovation Committee and the Natural Science and Engineering Research Council’s Alliance Public Impact Value Proposition committee. She also serves on the governing and advisory boards for Hamilton Health Sciences, VISTA, and BrainsCAN, and is a founding steering committee member of the Canadian Brain Research Strategy. Allison is also a longstanding and passionate supporter of research communication and public outreach as well as a sought-after speaker, podcaster, and commentator in national and international media. She is the co-founder of FoVea (Females of Vision et al.), an international organization to advance women in vision science. She is a founding co-champion of the Ontario Hospital Association’s Research and Innovation Anti-Racism Taskforce, and official ally in the Canadian Black Scientists Network. Allison is an unwavering advocate for women and underrepresented groups in science, engineering, and technology.

She has won numerous national and international awards for research, teaching, and leadership — including serving as the country’s first Canada Research Chair in Cognitive Neuroscience and being named one of WXN’s Top 100 Most Powerful Women in Canada (2019). In her spare time, Allison is proving that you’re never too old to learn, starting to play drums a few years ago, joining a band, and completing her Drum Professional certificate at the Berklee College of Music.