Kimberley Phillips

Kimberley Phillips serves as Professor of Neuroscience at Trinity University's Center for the Sciences and Innovation, with dual affiliations in Psychology and Pre-Medical/Health Professions programs. Her research integrates neuroanatomy, primatology, and behavioral neuroscience to investigate primate cognitive evolution.

Education:

• Ph.D. - The University of Georgia
• M.S. - The University of Georgia
• B.S. - Wofford College

Dr. Phillips' research program centers on the neurological basis of skilled motor behaviors in capuchin monkeys, utilizing non-invasive MRI and DTI brain imaging alongside problem-solving task analysis. Her work bridges evolutionary biology and clinical neuroscience, particularly through Parkinson's disease modeling in marmosets and studies of age-related cognitive decline. Current investigations focus on loneliness impacts on neural aging through her NIH-funded $1.4M grant.

Her publication record reveals consistent expertise in corpus callosum morphology, hemispheric asymmetry, and primate cognition across 15+ years. Recent work demonstrates increasing methodological sophistication through multimodal neuroimaging and cross-species comparisons spanning capuchins, marmosets, and chimpanzees.

Scientific Recognition:

• NIH R01 Grant ($1.4 Million) for loneliness and cognitive decline research (2019)
• Trinity University Faculty IMPACT Award (2019)
• President of the American Society of Primatologists

As principal investigator, Dr. Phillips directs a productive research program involving undergraduate and graduate students in both laboratory and field studies. Her leadership extends to developing best practices for primate neuroimaging through society-level initiatives. Current projects examine myelin degradation patterns in aging primates and their relationship to cognitive decline, with implications for human neurodegenerative disorders.