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BEI Mission Statement
BEI Mission Statement
“Our mission is to build an intergenerational program designed to improve the quality of life and memory of our senior citizens through memory-stimulating and cognitive-restoring activities.”
-Brain Exercise Initiative
Welcome, we are the Tulane University Chapter of the Brain Exercise Initiative!
Welcome, we are the Tulane University Chapter of the Brain Exercise Initiative!
Brain Exercise Initiative is a completely student led 501(c)(3)nonprofit organization. It was originally founded by UCLA student Esin Gumustekin, who was inspired by research done in Japan by neuroscientist Dr. Ryuta Kawashima. Dr. Kawashima found that those with Alzheimer’s showed great improvements by doing simple math and reading aloud for 30 minutes a day, 5 times a week. The improvements were found in cognitive functioning (measured by the Mini Mental State Examinations and the Frontal Assessment Batteries), feelings of happiness, and communication. There were even some miraculous cases, such as a bedridden individual who began to walk again after completing the exercises for 6 months. While these activities are regularly practiced in care centers in Japan, Esin was inspired to make these activities more commonplace in other countries as well. Thus, Brain Exercise Initiative was born: an intergenerational nonprofit where university students conduct brain exercise programs in retirement homes. The Brain Exercise Initiative is now in 4 countries, with 65 chapters and over 800 volunteers!
The Research
The Research
For more information on the research that inspired the Brain Exercise Initiative please visit:
what we do?
what we do?
We volunteer our time at local New Orleans retirement homes leading them through a series of exercise brain stimulating activities. These packets include reading, writing, and arithmetic exercises that are aimed at improving their cognitive function and keeping their brain healthy. We work with many different types of people including healthy adults to those specifically dealing with Alzheimer’s disease and Dementia.
When doing these simple brain exercises they activate the pre-frontal cortex of the brain which is the part that controls memory and cognition. The goal of our organization is to slow the decline of neurodegenerative diseases, while also developing long lasting relationships with the Senior citizens.
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