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Parkinson Discovery Institute
Community Trusted Resource for Research & Support
Executive Board
The Executive Board of the PDI is consists of scientists, physicians, and those at the forefront of the battle with Parkinson's disease; patients and caregivers.
Michael F. Salvatore, Ph.D.
Michael Salvatore was born and raised in Olmsted Falls, Ohio, a suburb of Cleveland. He graduated from Olmsted Falls High School in 1984, and then received his BA from Ohio Wesleyan University in 1988. After 7 years in academia and industry as a research associate in the Cleveland area, he relocated to the Deep South in 1995 to begin his doctoral work in neuroscience at Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center in New Orleans. After receiving his doctorate, in 2000, he began his postdoctoral work at The University of Kentucky Medical Center in Lexington as a Fellow at the Morris K Udall Parkinson's Disease Research Center of Excellence.
During that time, his mother was diagnosed with Parkinson's, beginning a 12 year battle. He began his independent Parkinson's research at LSU Health Sciences Center in Shreveport in 2006, where he trained 3 doctoral students. He moved his lab to Fort Worth in January 2015 and has since grown his research, notably with grants from the NIH and Dept of Defense and trained 2 additional graduate students to their Ph.D. His research focuses on how exercise affects brain neurochemistry to improve motor and cognitive function against disease progression. He loves the mechanistic aspects of his work, and how they can apply to help people with PD have a better daily life. He has served many times on review panels for Center grants and Impact Awards the Parkinson's Foundation and for the CNNT review panel for grants submitted to the National Institutes of Health (NIH). He believes that the State of Texas is very well-positioned to financially support high level PD research at the preclinical and clinical levels. His interests include learning and playing piano literature (Debussy, Chopin are favorites), gardening, and hiking outdoors. He has 2 daughters (Alessandra and Regina) and is married to Dr. Vicki Nejtek. His goal for the PDI is for it to be a major positive force to improve the lives of people battling Parkinson's residing in the DFW Metroplex and in the Lone Star State.
Jerome Lisk, M.D.MBA, MS, FAAN
Dr. Lisk is a Clinical Assistant Professor at The University of Texas Health Science Center at Fort Worth and has graduated summa cum laude from Naveen Jindal School of Management at University of Texas at Dallas with an MS/MBA degree in Executive Health Care Management and a graduate certificate in Health Information Leadership. He is a dual board-certified Neurologist and Key Opinion Leader for several pharmaceutical
companies with a subspeciality in Movement Disorders. He has been a Principal Site Investigator in several national clinical research trials in Parkinson’s disease and Senior Medical Advisor for several Biotech Companies. Dr. Lisk is also the very first Digital Opinion Leader for TEVA pharmaceuticals providing expertise on social media and other digital platforms. He also serves on the NFL’s Concussion Settlement Appeals Advisory Panel.
He is an Alumni of the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, where he participated in research with immunotoxin therapy on cancer cell lines in the Department of Pediatric Neurosurgery.
Dr. Lisk received a medical degree at the Medical College of Virginia, completed an internship at The University of California, Los Angeles and Neurology Residency and Movement Disorders fellowship at the University of Texas at Houston. He has had leadership training as a 2013 Graduate of the American Academy of Neurology Palatucci Advocacy Leadership Forum, 2016 Graduate of the American Academy of Neurology Diversity Leadership Program and 2018 Graduate of the Trinity Leadership Curriculum. He has also is a 2010 NAACP Man of Valor Award Recipient, voted as a Pasadena Top Doc by
Pasadena Magazine and has been a moderator and a speaker for past International American Academy of Neurology Annual Meetings. In 2017 Dr. Lisk was appointed by Governor Abbott to serve on the Texas Health Service Authority Board overseeing health information exchange in the state of Texas. He has been interviewed as a medical expert on ABC, NBC, Pasadena Public TV, KJLH & 980AM Radio in Los Angeles and several podcasts. He has also been a physician consultant for Paramount Network’s Spike TV, a Medical Correspondent Pasadena Crown City News, Host for ReachMD satellite radio.
Valerie Johnson, PT, DPT
Dr. Valerie Johnson, PT, DPT, is the owner and founder of Balance Therapy LLC and The Parkinson’s Mind Body Institute (501c3). Since 2012, she has dedicated her career to enhancing the well-being of individuals living with Parkinson’s disease, imbalance, and dizziness, and she is passionate about the transformative power of movement.
In addition to holding a Doctor of Physical Therapy degree, Valerie is a certified expert in PWR! (Parkinson’s Wellness Recovery!) and LSVT BIG® therapy for Parkinson’s. She also served as the team neuro-therapist for the Dallas Mavericks for six years. Valerie offers a range of in-person and online movement and fitness classes designed specifically for people with Parkinson’s.
As the founder of The MIND Program (Movement Initiative for the Newly Diagnosed) and co-founder of Endeavor Parkinsonology and an executive board member of the Parkinson’s Discovery Institute, Valerie is a catalyst for change within the Dallas–Fort Worth Parkinson’s community. These programs reflect her commitment to providing free physical therapy, exercise classes, resources, and educational initiatives to empower individuals affected by Parkinson’s. She also authored and published an ebook detailing the benefits of exercise for PD, which is free on her website.
Valerie’s educational journey includes completing the Vestibular Rehabilitation Competency Certificate at Emory University, sponsored by the American Physical Therapy Association. Her expertise spans physical therapy for Parkinson’s disease, concussions, imbalance, dizziness, vision dysfunction, functional movement disorders, dystonia, and Pilates-based rehabilitation. Valerie stands at the forefront of innovative and compassionate care for individuals navigating neurologic challenges.
Vicki A. Nejtek-Salvatore, Ph.D.
Dr. Nejtek-Salvatore was born and raised in Fort Worth. She received her B.A. in Psychology at the University of Texas at Dallas, graduating Summa Cum Laude in 1995, A year later she received her Master’s of Science in Cognition and Behavioral Neuroscience, and a Doctorate in Cognition and Behavioral
Neuroscience with two minors – Developmental Psychology and Communication Sciences in 1999. She completed her post-doctoral training UT Southwestern Medical Center in Psychiatry from 1999 – 2001. She also received training to conduct functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) through an Advanced fMRI Fellowship training from Dr. Robert Savoy of Massachusetts General Hospital Nuclear Medicine Research, Dr. Tom Zeffiro of Georgetown University, and National Institute of Mental Health faculty Drs. Peter Bandettini and Michael Beauchamp. She has participated in conducting 56 grant-funded clinical trials investigating drug treatments , neuroimaging, and testing efficacy of intervention programs. She now works with Dr. Salvatore to determine cross-species translational components for exercise intervention, looking at the common avenues for cognitive and motor function against serum and brain tissue biomarkers.
Her grandfather and uncle had Parkinson disease (PD) which promoted the desire to know what triggers the onset of Parkinson and find out how to better treat this disease to reverse the course of deterioration. My fortunate collaboration with Dr. Michael Salvatore affords the rare opportunity to participate in cutting-edge cross-species translational research investigating humans with early-stage PD in relation to genetic and brain lesion rat models of PD.
In 2024, she and Dr. Salvatore co-founded The Parkinson Discovery Institute, a 501(c)3 non-profit organization promoting Knowledge, Support, Trust, and Research to improve
the wellness and quality of life for patients and caregivers alike. With our Executive Board members, our primary goal is to serve as a community trusted resource for research and support helping patients and caregivers navigate their Parkinson’s journey.
Jason R. Richardson, Ph.D.
Dr. Richardson is the Dianne Isakson Distinguished Professor in the Department of Physiology and Pharmacology at the University of Georgia. He is also a founding member of the Isakson Center for Neurological Disease Research. A native of Louisiana, Dr. Richardson began his work in Parkinson's Disease at during his postdoctoral training at Emory University. He began his independent career at Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School in New Jersey. In 2015, Dr. Richardson moved to Northeast Ohio Medical University to develop a Center for Neurodegenerative Disease and Aging. Here, he met Dr. Salvatore and began their long-standing collaboration on the role of exercise in improving motor and cognitive function and the neurobiological basis for this improvement. In 2018, Dr. Richardson moved his research group to Florida International University, where he also served as Associate Dean for Research at the Robert Stempel College of Public Health and Social Work.
Dr. Richardson has been at the forefront of studying the role of environmental exposures and gene-environment interaction in both Parkinson's and Alzheimer's diseases. He has been funded his entire career by the National Institutes of Health (NIH), Department of Defense (DOD), Veterans Administration (VA), various private foundations and philanthropic donations. Dr. Richardson, his mentees and collaborators have published over 125 peer-reviewed manuscripts in these research areas and he has served as Chair and Member of dozens of grant review panels for the NIH, DOD, VA and multiple foundations focused on Parkinson's disease, including the Michael J. Fox Foundation.
In collaboration with Drs. Salvatore, Nejtek-Salvatore and others, his research seeks means to identify those at risk for Parkinson's and Alzheimer's disease, develop predictive biomarkers and novel treatments for slowing the progression of disease.
Mike Warren
Mr. Warren serves as a patient ambassador to the Board and proactively promotes the benefits of physical activity in the battle against the disease. He was born in Worcester, MA. He is married (Lyydia), and has a daughter (Rachel), and granddaughter (Eden). He holds a BS in Criminal Justice from University Texas Arlington (1981). He served as a Tarrant County Juvenile Probation Officer from 1981-2020 . He is a practicing Catholic, serving at Mass weekly at St. Elizabeth Ann Seaton.
His hobbies include regular practice of multiple venues of physical activity, including ice skating, boxing, Peloton weight training, gardening, horses, and time at home . He was diagnosed with Parkinson's in November 2020.
Affliction....Endurance...Character....Hope
Helene Alphonso, D.O.
Helene Alphonso DO is a Fellow of the American Psychiatric Association and board certified by the American Board Neurology and Psychiatry and the American Board of Preventive Medicine in Addiction. She graduated with honors in Neuroscience as an undergraduate at UT Dallas and attended Texas College of Osteopathic Medicine. Dr. Alphonso practices as an Attending Psychiatrist at John Peter Smith Hospital (JPS) in Fort Worth Texas for their Psychiatric Residency program and as a consultant to the Neuroscience Institute at the University of North Texas Health Science Center. She is an Assistant Professor for the Texas College of Osteopathic Medicine, and Texas Christian University Medical School.
She has previously served as the Director of Medical Education for Texas College of Osteopathic Medicine Residencies, Director of Osteopathic Medical Education at JPS, and Osteopathic Program Director of Psychiatry at JPS.
Her hobbies include Yoga, running, singing in her church choir, and Krav Maga.
Freda Wells
Freda was born and raised in the small East Texas town of Mt. Pleasant. She entered the broadcast industry as Office Assistant at the small hometown radio station in 1987. In late 1988 she moved to Dallas to become the Office Manager and Asst. to the General Manager of KSKY radio. In 1998 she joined CBS radio and rose to the position of Building Manager and Asst to the General Manager of three radio stations. When the radio industry downsized in the early 2000's, Freda held various accounting positions and ended her working career by retiring from United Apartment Group in 2020.
Freda is the mother of two grown sons and is grandmother of three. She has been married to Donald Wells since 1990. They have lived on Eagle Mountain Lake north of Ft. Worth for the past 35 years, where she enjoys water skiing and wakeboarding. Freda is caregiver to Donald, who was diagnosed with Parkinson's in 2013.
In retirement, Freda has been busy helping to serve her community. She is an active member of Lighthouse Fellowship Church. Freda and Donald help lead a small Life Group in their home. Freda has also served as a member of the board for Punching Out Parkinson's. Her desire is to help PDI develop Parkinson's Caregiver Support Groups in Tarrant County.
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