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A ‘super’ mind-blowing conference

For many Bradley students, the closest connection to a physician on campus is Health Services. But last Wednesday, students had the opportunity to meet world-renowned physicians and researchers as Bradley hosted the third annual Super Brain Summit.

The theme for this year was “Change Your Brain, Change Your Life: Understanding Trauma,” which took place Wednesday in Hayden-Clark Alumni Center’s Peplow Pavilion and featured two keynote speakers.

“Super Brain Summit is a conference where renowned speakers are brought in to discuss interesting topics pertaining to the brain and its functions,” Christy Haeffele, program coordinator of Continuing Education, said. “It is the vision of Dr. Lori Russell-Chapin, Co-Director of the Center for Collaborative Brain Research (CCBR) and benefits the research and initiatives that the CCBR is tasked with.”

The themes and speakers change each year, with last year’s focus on neuroplasticity. There were many ways participate including attending in person, streaming from a computer through Live WebEx or watching the recorded sessions, which will be available by the end of March.

“One of the missions of a university and the CCBR is to disseminate new knowledge and new research,” Russel-Chapin, professor in the Department of Leadership in Education, Nonprofits and Counseling in the College of Education and Health Sciences, said. “Understanding the brain and its functions allow people to have the opportunity to live healthier lifestyles. This year’s theme … offers participants essential information about our brain and the impact of trauma.”

This year’s Super Brain Summit welcomed Daniel Amen, a double-board certified psychiatrist, physician, professor and 10-time New York Times best selling author, to present during three sessions of the summit.

“Every year we try to bring in a different speaker that can focus on a slightly different theme,” Haeffele said. “Dr. Daniel Amen will discuss an overview of the brain systems and their impact on everyday life and how to optimize them; ADHD, PTSD, TBI and Memory Rescue.”

Bessel van de Kolk delivered the keynote opening speech via a livestream. He is a psychiatrist and author, whose talk discussed implications for helping professionals on understanding trauma.

“Neurocounseling is changing the field of mental health,” Rachel Banaszewski, graduate assistant in the Leadership in Education, Nonprofits & Counseling Department, said. “It is very exciting to have such great researchers presenting at Bradley University, and I consider myself lucky to be able to to attend.”

All proceeds of the event are given to the CCBR.

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