The Waisman Center at UW-Madison has selected Qiang Chang, a longstanding member of the University of Wisconsin–Madison Waisman Center’s leadership team, as the new director of the center.
Chang is an associate professor of genetics and neurology and interim director of the Waisman Center’s Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities Research Center (IDDRC). He is also the principal investigator for the Waisman Center core grant awarded by the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development. According to a press release from the university, he will assume his new position as director on July 1 and report to the UW–Madison vice chancellor for research and graduate education.
“The Waisman Center has a long and rich history as a multidisciplinary center devoted to the study of human development, intellectual and developmental disabilities, and neurodegenerative diseases throughout the lifespan,” says Chang in a statement. “It’s truly an honor to be able to lead such a dedicated and world-class cohort of faculty and affiliates that are working together in basic and translational research to understand developmental disabilities and develop effective treatments for some of the most challenging disorders. I also look forward to fostering the center’s strong partnerships on campus and in the community.”
Chang has a Ph.D. from the University of Pennsylvania and joined the UW–Madison faculty in 2007, following postdoctoral training at MIT. His research interests focus on Rett syndrome, a debilitating genetic condition that primarily affects girls. Chang will be the center’s sixth director.
