Dr. Alynda (Lyndie) Wood is a Health Science Policy Analyst in the Office of Scientific Management and Operations in the NINDS Office of the Director. In this role she provides policy analysis, coordination, and communications support to NINDS leadership, and works to ensure strategic alignment across the Institute. Lyndie serves as a liaison between the NINDS Office of the Director and NINDS congressionally-mandated programs to ensure efficient flow of information and integration with OD resources. In this capacity, she serves as the Executive Secretary for the Helping End Addiction Long-term (HEAL) Initiative IC Directors Meetings, the Scientific Committee Specialist for the HEAL Multi-disciplinary Working Group, as well as providing other HEAL coordination, policy, and strategic planning support. She also supports policy and engagement activities for the Alzheimer’s Disease/Alzheimer’s Disease-Related Dementia program, and contributes to efforts to optimize organizational, budget, policy, and communication efforts in support of the institute's scientific priorities.
Lyndie has a PhD is from Emory University where she studied the role of the basal ganglia and midbrain dopamine system on motor control and motor learning. Prior to her PhD, she studied olfactory system development and plasticity as a Postbaccalaureate IRTA in the NINDS intramural research program. She came to the NINDS OD in 2022 as an AAAS Science and Technology Policy Fellow.