On March 1st, Randall (Randy) Carpenter joins RSRT as the Chief Scientific Officer (CSO). For years, 17 to be exact (between RSRF and RSRT), I’ve been the de facto CSO, with lots of assistance from a wide network of advisors. As the science matured, more drug targets materialized and the prospect of clinical trials testing drugs or biologicals that could actually significantly improve our children became more of a reality, I and the RSRT board decided that the time was right to hire a CSO. We hired a search firm to assist us and set out to look for someone who had both drug development and clinical research experience, ideally in the rare disease space – a tall order. The hunt for the ideal candidate was extensive. As it turned out, the person who checked all the boxes was someone I’ve known for years. Someone I already had a great deal of respect for and confidence in. Someone I’ve turned to for advice. And the icing on the cake – he lives just 15 minutes from me.
The Rett field has come so far in the last 17 years. Scientists and clinicians have made enormous progress and Rett families have raised millions of dollars to get us where we are today. There is still a lot of work and challenges ahead. I have every expectation that with Randy on board we will meet those challenges head on.
Please join me in welcoming our new CSO.
