Nicole Fowler, PhD, MHSA, was named the Klapper Family Scholar in Aging and Family Caregiving Research.

The role was created in 2024 by the Klapper Family Foundation – an Indianapolis-based nonprofit built by Indiana University alums David I. and Mary “Betty” Klapper – and is intended for a full-time member of the IU School of Medicine faculty “whose research focuses on advancing the science of caregiving in older adults and will be an investigator in the IU Center for Aging Research.”

Fowler is the Department of Medicine’s Vice Chair for Research. She has served as the Associate Director of the IU Center for Aging Research at Regenstrief Institute since 2019 and is a scientist in the Center for Health Innovation and Implementation Science at IU.

Prior to stepping into the Vice Chair role earlier this year, Fowler was the inaugural Director of Research for the Department of Medicine Division of General Internal Medicine and Geriatrics – the largest division in the school’s largest department – and was tasked with leading a more than $20-million research portfolio.

Her research interests include improving the organization and delivery of health services for older adults living with complex health and social care needs, in particular, people living with dementia and their family caregivers. She has designed and conducted multiple trials in the areas of nonpharmacologic approaches in dementia care, family caregiving, and medical decision making for older adults with cognitive impairment.

The Klapper Family’s gift calls for expanding evidence-based research into the “integral role family caregivers have in providing emotional support, physical care, medication management, care coordination, and decision-making for loved ones with frailty, serious illness, functional limitations, and dementia.”

Such research is needed to help prepare and support caregivers as well as to mitigate or prevents adverse health effects, according to the gift agreement.

The Klapper Family Foundation has a history of philanthropic activity throughout Indianapolis and has generously partnered with IU in the past. The Klapper Scholarship Fund, for example, supports undergraduate students in the Kelley School of Business on the IU Indianapolis campus. The foundation earned the IU Indianapolis Spirit of Philanthropy Award in 2003.

From Love to Legacy

David Klapper’s devotion to his wife during her battle with dementia inspired him to support caregiving research at IU School of Medicine, aiming to improve the lives of millions of families facing similar challenges. Klapper’s business success gave him the resources to support his wife, Betty, as she grappled with the onset of dementia. He hopes a gift to support research will allow IU to find ways to help other families cope with the challenges those efforts bring.

Read More about the Klapper Family and their generous gift to IU School of Medicine