Dr. Julio J. Ramirez obtained his Ph.D. in Psychology from Clark University in 1983. He did his postdoctoral work in neuroscience at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology from 1985 to 1986. He taught at the College of St. Benedict/St. John's University from 1981 to 1985. Presently he is the R. Stuart Dickson Professor of Psychology at Davidson College, where he has been since 1986.
Dr. Ramirez's research interests include the recovery of function after central nervous system injury, with an emphasis on determining the functional significance of hippocampal neuroplasticity. His research has been supported by the National Science Foundation, the National Institute of Mental Health, the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, and the North Carolina Board of Science and Technology.
Dr. Ramirez teaches undergraduate courses in neuroscience and psychology. He has involved well over 150 undergraduate students in his research program since 1981. Numerous students have coauthored presentations and papers with him in national and international conferences and journals
The Council for Advancement and Support of Education, Washington, D. C., in 1989 recognized his contributions to undergraduate science education when he was named the North Carolina Professor of the Year and a National Gold Medal Professor of the Year. In 2004, the National Science Foundation gave him the Director’s Award for Distinguished Teaching Scholars. In 2011, Dr. Ramirez received the Presidential Award for Excellence in Science, Mathematics, and Engineering Mentoring (PAESMEM) from President Barack Obama in recognition of his national leadership in mentoring undergraduate students and junior faculty. He also received in 2011 the Society for Neuroscience Award for Education in Neuroscience and the Faculty for Undergraduate Neuroscience Mentor Award. He co-directed the Neuroscience Scholars Program (NSP) at the Society for Neuroscience from 2012 to 2021 with Dr. Gina Poe. During his term as co-Director, the NSP was awarded a Presidential Award from the White House (2014 PAESMEM). Dr. Ramirez received the Bernice Grafstein Award for Outstanding Accomplishments in Mentoring from the Society for Neuroscience in 2015. The Association for Psychological Science (APS) awarded him a lifetime achievement award for mentorship in 2024 (APS Mentor Award). He is a Fellow of the American Psychological Association, the American Association for the Advancement of Science, the Association for Psychological Science, the Council on Undergraduate Research, and Faculty for Undergraduate Neuroscience. He was the Founding President of the Faculty for Undergraduate Neuroscience, a national organization dedicated to promoting undergraduate education in the neurosciences. He serves on the editorial boards of The Neuroscientist, Restorative Neurology and Neuroscience, and The Journal of Undergraduate Neuroscience Education (which he co-founded as Senior Editor). Dr. Ramirez served on the Society for Neuroscience Council from 2015-2019. He also served as Treasurer Elect, Treasurer, and Past Treasurer for the Society from 2019 to 2023.