Karen Francis, Ph.D., is an Associate Professor and Chair in
the Exercise & Sport Science Department at the University of
San Francisco. She teaches courses in the areas of movement
science: Neuroscience, Motor Learning, and Statistics. Dr.
Francis's research interests are focused on how we control
and coordinate movement and how aging and disease affects our
ability to control movements. In one line of research, she is
examining the extent to which pathological tremor interferes with
force control abnormalities and hence mechanisms responsible for
control and coordination. In another line of research, she is
examining neural and behavioral mechanisms that underlie skill
acquisition and hence our knowledge regarding force control changes
associated with aging and disease processes. She is a member of the
Neuroscience Minor Committee, Interdisciplinary Committee on Aging
and the Active Living Across the Lifespan research group. Dr.
Francis is a member of the Society for Neuroscience, Gerontological
Society of America, and the North American Society for the
Psychology of Sport and Physical Activity.
Dr. Francis is a mentor and fundraiser for Big City
Mountaineer (BCM), a nonprofit organization whose mission is to
enhance the lives of under-resourced teens through transformative
outdoor experiences. She mentors teens on day and weeklong
backpacking expeditions and in February 2013 she will climb Mt.
Kilimanjaro through BCM's Summit for Someone program. The
funds raised through the Summit for Someone program will directly
increase the number of youth served in our summer programs.
