Nancy Donaghy, PhD Student in Rehabilitation Science

Nancy DonaghyNancy is currently a graduate research assistant for George Mason University’s Rehabilitation Science doctoral program.  She holds a Bachelor of Science in Rehabilitation Science and is a member of the American College of Sports Medicine.  Prior to her position at George Mason University, Nancy had worked in the health and fitness industry as a certified personal trainer and group trainer since 2001.  Throughout that time, she developed and executed fitness programs that optimally targeted goals of increased performance, cardiovascular health, strength, and flexibility among young and older adults.  The year before her admittance into the doctoral program, Nancy volunteered in George Mason University’s Functional Performance Lab as an undergraduate research assistant.  She assisted researchers in an exercise intervention which tested the power, agility, and coordination of a group of older adults with Parkinson’s Disease.  She also assisted in collecting data for two foundational studies; one that evaluated aspects of mobility, static and dynamic stability, strength, and cognition among unimpaired older adults and another study that evaluated various aspects of mobility among a group of older adults with Parkinson’s Disease.  Her primary interests of study include strength and dynamic balance among older adults with neurological decline and disease.