Research
The mission of United Cerebral Palsy’s Research Council (URC) is to promote advances in research that inform evidence-based care for people with cerebral palsy across the lifespan.
Our vision: Changing the world for people with cerebral palsy through translational research and transformative care.
Our Impact
$180k
distributed in funding translational research that leads to transformative care for cerebral palsy
50
Research Council-sponsored scholarships for professional training for clinicians learning to implement early detection of CP in their communities
94+
clinicians supported in expanding professional network and knowledge
1110
physicians and clinicians obtaining CME credits by attending the Professional Learning Series
Because of supporters like you, UCP can fund groundbreaking research that transforms lives.
Professional Learning Series
The Professional Learning Series, hosted by UCP Research Council, UCP of Central Arizona, and Gillette Children’s, offers professionals an opportunity to learn more about cerebral palsy while earning Continuing Medical Education (CME) credits. The 90-minute expert-to-expert webinars provide the latest research that can be translated to care by professionals who work with children with cerebral palsy and other neurodevelopmental disorders.
Physicians: This activity has been planned and implemented in accordance with the accreditation requirements and policies of the Minnesota Medical Association (MMA) through the joint providership of Gillette Children’s and United Cerebral Palsy (UCP). Gillette Children’s is accredited by the MMA to provide continuing medical education for physicians.
Here's What's Coming Up:
Using BabyOSCAR to Identify Selective Motor Control
Featuring Dr. Colleen Peyton and Dr. Theresa Sukal-Moulton
February 12, 2026 @ 6 p.m. ET
Here's What You May Have Missed:
ON Time Mobility: A Rights-Based Framework to Support Self-Generated Movement in Young Children With Disabilities
Featuring Dr. Heather Feldner and Andrina Sabet, PT
Additional sessions are archived below.
Previous Sessions
Confusing Outcome Studies and Controversies in Cerebral Palsy
- Presented by Mark E. Gormley, Jr., M.D.
- Watch a recording of the presentation.
Advances in Deep Brain Stimulation Technology: Lighting the Way for Dyskinetic Cerebral Palsy
- Presented by Dr. Michael Kruer of Phoenix Children’s
- Watch the recording of the webinar.
Baby Constraint-Induced Movement Therapy: The Essentials of Evaluation & Treatment
- Presented by Kelli Moberg, MS, OTR/L, of Gillette Children’s
- Watch a recording of the webinar.
Hip Surveillance in Children with Cerebral Palsy
- Featuring Michael Healy, MD, Gillette Children’s
- Watch a recording of the webinar.
What is Cerebral Palsy? A Neurologist Perspective
- Presented by Tim Feyma, MD, physician at Gillette Children’s
- Watch a recording of the webinar.
Is Therapy Making a Difference? Best Practices for Complex Cases of Cerebral Palsy
- Presented by Ginny Paleg, PT, DScPT, MPT, physiotherapist and Dayna Pool, PhD, physiotherapist, early career researcher, podcaster, and clinical lead of The Healthy Strides Foundation
Dystonia in Cerebral Palsy
- Presented by Bhooma Aravamuthan, MD, DPhil, Assistant Professor, pediatric movement disorders specialist, and neuroscientist at Washington University School of Medicine and the Cerebral Palsy Center at St. Louis Children’s Hospital
- Watch a recording of the webinar.
The Role of Perception-Action in Learning: Implications for Assessment and Intervention of Children with Movement Disorders
- Presented by Lisa Pinson PT, DPT, C/PAA-I, pediatric physical therapist at Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta and researcher for the Baby Brain Optimization Project at Emory University
- Watch a recording of the webinar.
Pediatric to Adult Healthcare Transition: Developing a Partnership to Help Patients and the Healthcare Team Thrive
- Presented by Tori Bahr, MD, FAAP, internal medicine and pediatric Complex Care physician at Gillette Children’s
- Watch a recording of the webinar.
What to Know About Cerebral Visual Impairment: Evaluation and Treatment to Improve a Child’s Functional Performance
- Presented by Karen Harpster, PhD, OTR/L, Clinician Scientist and Occupational Therapist at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital, and Assistant Professor at the University of Cincinnati
- Watch a recording of the webinar.
New Frontiers in Mobile Brain Imaging and Robotics in Pediatric Neuro-Rehabilitation
- Presented by Dr. Diane Damiano, PT, PhD, Senior Investigator at the National Institutes of Health and Chief of the Functional and Applied Biomechanics Section in the Rehabilitation Medicine Department
- Watch a recording of the webinar.
New Discoveries in the Evolving World of Genetics: Diagnosis and Treatment of Cerebral Palsy
- Presented by Dr. Michael Kruer, a pediatric movement disorders specialist neurologist, human geneticist, and co-chair of the UCP Research Committee
- Watch a recording of the webinar.
Management of Difficult Clinical Presentations of Hypertonia in Children with Disabilities
- Presented by Dr. Mark Gormley, Jr., M.D., a pediatric rehabilitation medicine physician at Gillette Children’s
- Watch a recording of the webinar.
Constraint Therapy for Children with Hemiplegic CP: What You Need to Know – From the Brain to the Clinic
- Presented by Dr. Darcy Fehlings, head of the Division of Developmental Pediatrics and a Professor in the Department of Pediatrics at the University of Toronto
- Watch a recording of the webinar.
Cerebral Palsy: Early Evaluation and Intervention
- Presented by Dr. Angela Sinner, a pediatric rehabilitation medicine physician at Gillette Children’s
- Watch a recording of the presentation.
The Evolving Impact of Genetic Findings on the Diagnosis and Treatment of Cerebral Palsy
- Presented by Dr. Michael Kruer, a pediatric movement disorders neurologist, developmental pediatrician, and molecular geneticist
- Watch a recording of the presentation.
The Critical Role of Gait Analysis in the Care of Individuals with Cerebral Palsy
- Presented by Dr. Tom Novacheck, an orthopedic surgeon and Associate Medical Director at Gillette Children’s
- Watch a recording of the presentation.