Dr. Fricks-Gleason’s primary area of research interest is the neurobiology of drug addiction. Her graduate work at UC Irvine focused on the basal ganglia-related learning and memory processes underlying the development and expression of cocaine-cue memories. Her postdoctoral work took her to the University of Utah where she maintained her interest in the function of the basal ganglia and its role in disease, but shifted her focus to methamphetamine neurotoxicity to dorsal striatal dopamine terminals. Her current research focuses on the potential for exercise to attenuate the long-term neurochemical and cognitive consequences of methamphetamine abuse and propensity for cue-induced relapse. As a first-generation college student, herself, Dr. Fricks-Gleason benefitted tremendously from the opportunity to conduct undergraduate research with a faculty mentor at Claremont McKenna College; she prides herself on being a fierce advocate for her fellow first-gen students at Regis. One of her greatest passions is involving undergraduate students in her research and guiding them through their vocational discernment. Dr. Fricks-Gleason teaches a range of courses in the Department of Psychology & Neuroscience, including Introduction to Brain and Behavior, Cellular and Molecular Neuroscience, and Advanced Neuroscience Methods, and also enjoys teaching in the Integrative Core and for the Honors Program. If she’s not in the classroom or the lab, you’re likely to find her working with students on community outreach and public science education.
