Rodney Swain

Rodney Swain is a Professor in the Department of Psychology at the University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee (UWM), with affiliations in the Neuroscience faculty. His research focuses on the structural and functional plasticity of the brain in response to motor learning, exercise, and behavioral experience, particularly within the cerebellum and motor cortex.

His research interests include neuroplasticity, motor learning, cerebellar contributions to cognition, angiogenesis, and astrocyte-mediated plasticity. His lab investigates how synaptic, vascular, and glial changes support behavioral adaptation and recovery from neural injury.

The recent publications reveal a strong trend in exercise-induced neurovascular plasticity, motor skill-related synaptogenesis, and cerebellar modulation of higher cognitive functions. A subset of studies also explores educational innovation, particularly the U-Pace instructional model designed to improve student mastery and success.

• Motor learning and exercise differentially induce plastic changes in the cerebellum and motor cortex.
• Cerebellar nuclei inactivation alters social behavior and motivation.
• Vascular remodeling is critical for learning, independent of neurogenesis.

Scientific Awards:

• No specific awards mentioned in the provided text.

Rodney Swain advises graduate students, as indicated by student co-authors in publications, and leads an active research program supported by external funding (implied by publication volume and scope). His lab has explored both basic neuroscience mechanisms and applied educational strategies. He teaches courses in behavioral neuroscience, neurobiology of learning and memory, and brain injury.

He is associated with the Swain Lab, which has been active since at least 2015, focusing on experimental models of brain plasticity using rodent systems. The lab integrates behavioral, histological, and molecular techniques to study neural and vascular adaptation.