Claire Sexton, DPhil

Claire completed her doctoral and postdoctoral studies at the University of Oxford (2007-2019), before moving to the University of California San Francisco as an Atlantic Fellow for Equity in Brain Health (2017-2019). As a researcher, she has published over eighty journal articles that investigate the aging process, age-related diseases, and modifiable factors that promote brain health, including in Alzheimer’s and Dementia, Biological Psychiatry, JAMA Psychiatry, the Journal of Neuroscience, Lancet Public Health, Nature Human Behaviour, Nature Neuroscience, Neurology, and Sleep. As Senior Director, Scientific Programs and Outreach, at the Alzheimer’s Association (2020-2024) Claire led the strategy, development, management and evaluation of scientific programming across the International Society to Advance Alzheimer’s Research and Treatment (ISTAART) and the Alzheimer’s Association International Conference (AAIC) suite of events. In this role she also served as a spokesperson for the Association, communicating research advancements in Alzheimer’s at conferences, events, and in major media outlets, including The Washington Post, USA Today, The Daily Mail, New York Post and CNN. Claire completed her MBA at the University of Warwick (2024-2026), where her dissertation explored integrative partnerships between non-profit organisations and professional sports teams. Claire is currently the National Executive Programs Lead, Brain Health at the American Heart Association (2026-present), where she works with external research and advisory committees, fosters robust research, develops business and programatic strategies, and drives best practices for an integrated approach to all domains of the Brain Health Initiative’s strategic priorities.