The University of Kansas School of Medicine announced the promotion of five faculty members in the Department of Neurology, effective July 1.

Jeffrey Statland, M.D., was promoted to professor with tenure, while Lee Rosterman, D.O., Muhammad Nashatizadeh, M.D., and Brennen Bittel, D.O., were promoted to associate clinical professor. Vikas Singh was promoted to associate clinical professor (volunteer).

Nationally and internationally recognized as an expert in neuromuscular research and care, Statland is the co-director of the Facioscapulohumeral Muscular Dystrophy Clinical Trial Research Network (FSHD CTRN), an international network of academic research centers dedicated to streamlining clinical trial research and speeding up the development of potential treatments for FSHD. In addition to authoring more than 70 peer-reviewed articles, seven book chapters and 120 published abstracts, he has been the principal investigator, co-principal investigator and site-principal investigator on multiple grant-funded projects. Statland teaches didactics as well as mentors and advises trainees, in addition to participating in and leading national and international educational opportunities for patients and his peers in the medical field. He also has been active in developing educational materials for patients, their families and patient advocates that are distributed nationally. As a neuromuscular specialist, he cares for patients with rare neuromuscular diseases and directs The University of Kansas Health System's Muscular Dystrophy Association (MDA) treatment program.

Rosterman, who is part of the comprehensive stroke team at The University of Kansas Health System, provides stroke care to patients throughout the region and is a physician for the University of Kansas football team as part of its Concussion Evaluation and Follow-Up Program. Rosterman also consults with the NFL Concussion Settlement Program and provides baseline neuropsychological and neurological assessment of retired professional football players. He is assistant program director of the Vascular Neurology Fellowship and informally teaches neurology residents, a stroke fellow and medical students while rounding on the inpatient services. Rosterman also is the local sub-investigator on multiple industry sponsored research studies and actively enrolls participants in stroke trials at KU Medical Center.

Nashatizadeh, a movement disorders specialist, teaches medical students as well as neurology and internal medicine residents as part of his responsibilities as primary attending physician on the neurology inpatient consult service at The University of Kansas Health System. The recipient of multiple Student Voice Awards for excellence in teaching, Nashatizadeh is the assistant director of the neurology clerkship and associate director of the Movement Disorder Fellowship. In addition to serving as a sub-investigator on an MS clinical trial performing outcome assessments, he is an investigator on multiple pharm-sponsored movement disorder clinical trials, has co-authored seven peer-reviewed articles and authored several book chapters.

Bittel informally teaches residents and medical students on rounds as a neurohospitalist with The University of Kansas Health System as well as gives formal lectures in her faculty role, which includes engaging in a limited number of research projects and producing two peer-reviewed publications. She also mentors physicians transitioning from training into a neurohospitalist role. Clinically, Bittel provides care to neurology inpatients as a consultant to inpatient services at the health system, including the Emergency Department (ED), which recognized her as Consultant of the Year in 2019 for her responsiveness and excellence of care.

The section chief of neurology at the Kansas City Veteran's Administration Medical Center, Singh is the program site director for the KU Medical Center neurology residency and neurology medical student clerkship. In this role, he has developed curricula and resident and student orientation programs. He also is a faculty member on the KU Medical Center clinical neurophysiology fellowship. An active researcher, Singh has been the recipient of multiple Midwest Biomedical Research Foundation grants. He is the co-author of 25 peer-reviewed papers and 44 published abstracts, in addition to presenting posters at a number of national and international meetings.