Dr. Moeller selected as Wright Distinguished Chair

F. Gerard Moeller, M.D., ’85, Director of the Wright Center, has been appointed as the inaugural C. Kenneth and Dianne Wright Distinguished Chair in Clinical and Translational Research.

Dr. Moeller earned his M.D. from the University of Texas Health Sciences Center at Houston (now known as McGovern Medical School at UTHealth) in 1985. He completed his internship and residency in psychiatry at the University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio from 1986-88.

Commenting on his appointment, Moeller said, “It is a great honor to be selected to hold a Chair that bears the names of C. Kenneth and Dianne Wright. Mr. Wright is one of the most magnanimous donors supporting clinical research at VCU, as was his wife before her passing. I personally owe a great debt of gratitude to Mr. Wright as does the Center that bears his name.”

In addition to directing the Wright Center, Moeller is internationally known for his translational research on impulsivity and addictions using brain imaging as a tool for medication development. He is principal investigator of a center grant funded by the National Institute on Drug Abuse to develop novel treatments for cocaine and opioid addictions.

At VCU, Moeller has worked to enhance the culture of translational research.  Approximately four years ago, he was appointed Director of the VCU Institute of Drug and Alcohol Studies, and two years ago, was appointed Director of the C. Kenneth and Dianne Wright Center for Clinical and Translational Research and Associate Vice President of Clinical Research.

Francis L. Macrina, Ph.D., Vice President for Research and Innovation, called Moeller a physician-scientist who is a translational research exemplar. “Gerry ‘s appointment to the first Wright Distinguished Chair is a fitting tribute to his  accomplishments in addiction science and to his visionary leadership of the Wright Center,” Macrina said.

The C. Kenneth and Dianne Wright Foundation has established a total of six Distinguished Chairs totaling $12 million. The remaining five endowed chairs will be awarded to faculty whose work promises to catalyze continued growth in translational research in the decades to come.

 

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