Administration Staff 

Mary Sundsmo, M.B.A., Shiley-Marcos ADRC Program Director, started her career at UCSD in 1980 in the labs of Drs. Miller and Saitoh, and joined the Shiley-Marcos ADRC in 1998 as Program Director.  She earned her undergraduate degree in Microbiology and her M.B.A. from the University of California, Irvine in 1969 and1999, respectively.  Ms. Sundsmo was an integral part of the UCSD-initiated legislation of assembly bill AB 2328, bill that called for expanding research opportunities for affected individuals, and was recognized with a Certificate of Appreciation on behalf of the UC Office of the President and the California Department of Health Services.  She has been elected to the Administrators Steering Committee of the 30 nationwide National Institute on Aging (NIA)-funded Alzheimer’s Research Centers and serves as a liaison between the NIA and members of the Committee.  Mary is a contributing writer for the George G. Glenner Center newsletter and serves as their Community Ambassador and on their Medical Advisory Board.  She volunteers as speaker for community caregiver, patient support, Kiwanis, and Rotary groups.  

Pamela Bell, joined the ADRC in 1990.  She provides Office Management support in the areas off administration lhuman resources, logistics, space planning, clerical staff and student supervision, etc.  Computer hardware, software, webmaster and network administration.

Sue Johnson has worked in administrative support for the UCSD School of Medicine since 1984 and has been with the Shiley-Marcos Alzheimer's Disease Research Center since 1997.  She began her tenure with UCSD at the Office of Continuing Medical Education and eventually moved on to manage numerous clinical research study offices for departments within the School of Medicine.  Sue has been the assistant for the ADRC's founder and now Professor Emeritus of Neurosciences, Dr. Robert Katzman, since 1997 and her projects have been numerous.   Some of these include the initiation of an international journal publication and editorial board, as well as the publication of a book on the history of AD research.  Ms. Johnson is the Conference Coordinator for the ADRC's annual Continuing Medical Education conference, attended by an average of 300 medical professionals who come from all over the world to learn of the most recent advances in Alzheimer's Disease Research from the ADRC faculty and guest speakers.  In addition, she manages the day to day operations of Professor Emeritus Katzman's busy office, as well as her own.

Dennis Nowak,

Christina Gigliott, Ph.D.,

Joseph Toledo, B.S., Administrative Analyst, handles the complex financial records of the ADRC Cores, Pilots and Projects.  He earned his B.S. in Commerce and Accounting in 1980 from the San Sebastián College in the Philippines.  He joined the ADRC in 1998, after years of working at the Department of Medicine.