Their generosity helped launch what has become a model of interdisciplinary brain research
A decade ago, when Marta and Bill Marko (E ’81, E *83) made the lead gift for the Tulane Brain Institute, their motivation was deeply personal. Marta’s mother had Alzheimer’s. Her father, Lewy body dementia. As they navigated their parents’ care, the Markos found themselves in the same position as so many others.
“We were seeing what was happening to them,” Marta said, “and we have a lot of friends dealing with parents going through the same things. It wasn’t just happening to us. There’s certainly a need to be thinking and talking about it.”
Bill, a member of the Board of Tulane and a longtime member of the School of Science and Engineering advisory board, had watched then-School of Science and Engineering Dean Nick Altiero champion an interdisciplinary brain research initiative alongside Lee Hamm, dean of the School of Medicine. When the Markos met founding director Jill Daniel, the vision crystallized.
“We loved everything about what they were starting to create,” Bill recalled. The Markos made the lead gift to launch the Tulane Brain Institute, and a decade later, they are most proud of what it has become: a model of cross-school collaboration that achieves breakthroughs more profound than those possible when researchers work in silos.
Their gift had two components. The first established the original home of the Brain Institute in Donna and Paul Flower Hall, where the founding offices were established for early researchers. A bridge now connects that space to Steven and Jann Paul Hall, with even more dedicated room for research and innovation.
Their gift also established the Marko Spark Award, which provided seed funding to interdisciplinary research teams. Over five years, ten researchers received $50,000 awards totaling $250,000. Those investments yielded $8.5 million in subsequent NIH grant funding.
“We had no idea it could turn into what it did,” Marta said.
“I’m a banker, so I love leveraging investments,” Bill added. The leverage has continued. The Markos have seen the Brain Institute grow from three dozen researchers to nearly seventy. “It’s been exciting to watch,” Bill said.
They believe the institute’s interdisciplinary character has been key to attracting major research funding. “With a multidisciplinary approach and the cooperation of the schools, we can go for bigger grants and more complicated studies,” Bill said. “We can play with the big boys and swing for the fences. That’s really encouraging.”
For Marta, the swing-for-the-fences ambition has a specific target: that Tulane will be the site of a major breakthrough in treating Alzheimer’s. “There’s been no magic treatment yet,” she said. “But we’d love to see it happen here.”
The Markos are optimistic about the institute’s future under Director Matthew Dalva, the Phyllis M. Taylor Presidential Chair in Brain Science. “We’re excited to see where it goes,” Bill said.
Their early support helped catalyze a decade of discovery. The continuing partnership of the Markos and supporters like them will shape what comes next.
Generosity that powers discovery
Many milestones of the past decade, including three presidential chairs, expanded laboratory space, and opportunities for student and faculty research, were made possible by our supporters, who will fuel our next decade of discovery.
The second floor of the Steven and Jann Paul Hall for Science and Engineering is home to the Tulane Brain Institute. Steven Paul (A&S ’72, G ’75, M ’75) credited undergraduate research at Tulane with launching his renowned career and hoped to create similar opportunities for future Tulanians.
Photo credit: Tulane University, Office of Advancement Communications and Marketing
" Presidential Chairs help universities attract and support extraordinary faculty whose research shapes the future. It is inspiring to see the Tulane Brain Institute fostering the kind of interdisciplinary collaboration that leads to meaningful discovery and impact. "
— Phyllis M. Taylor, whose generosity established the Phyllis M. Taylor Presidential Chair in Brain Science, held by Tulane Brain Institute Director Matthew B. Dalva
Priddy Family fuels early brain discoveries
Robert (UC ’68) and Kikie Priddy created the Priddy Family Spark Research Endowed Fund to accelerate early-stage neuroscience research at Tulane. The fund provides competitive awards that help faculty test bold ideas and gather pilot data in hopes of receiving federal research grants. The family believes strategic early investment in scientific discovery can generate tremendous returns for humanity. The prestigious awards also provide bridge funding and research support for graduate and undergraduate students working alongside Tulane Brain Institute faculty.
Panettas endow presidential chair on trauma research
Tulane alumni Marcela Villareal de Panetta (NC ’67) and Bernard J. Panetta II (A&S ’68) established the Panetta Family Presidential Chair Endowed Fund to support interdisciplinary neuroscience in the Tulane Brain Institute. The chair is intended for a scholar studying hormone- brain interactions, with emphasis on the cellular, molecular and circuit mechanisms by which stress, trauma or violence may alter brain development, neural function and behavior. As part of the Brain Institute, the holder of Panetta Family Presidential Chair will strengthen links among basic, clinical and translational research across Tulane’s schools of medicine, public health, science and engineering, and social work, and will help recruit a leading investigator whose work connects mechanistic brain science to urgent questions in human health.
