A Pioneer in the Fight Against Parkinson’s, Debi Brooks T’86 to Deliver 2026 Tuck Investiture Address

In 1998, film and television star Michael J. Fox went public with his diagnosis of young-onset Parkinson’s. Two years later, he stepped away from his acting career to embark on a new endeavor: a foundation dedicated to promoting Parkinson’s research. In Brooks, he found the consummate partner in his search for a cure. It was a career move that Brooks never anticipated, but one she could not deny. “I was really drawn to the idea of starting something from scratch with far better than average ingredients,” she told Tuck Today.

Since its founding in 2000, MJFF has funded more than $2.5 billion in global research programs—it is the world’s largest nonprofit funder of Parkinson’s research. In 2025 alone, the foundation funded 481 grants totaling $463 million.

“Our goal was to put ourselves and the capital we would raise into the perspective of the patients: what are their unmet needs, and what could be done?” Brooks told Time magazine.

In less than 30 years, MJFF has fundamentally altered the trajectory of progress in fighting Parkinson’s and transformed our understanding of the world’s fastest-growing brain disease. It has jumpstarted the development of new drugs and helped expand available treatments around the globe. As the New York Times wrote, MJFF is “the most important institution in the world fighting Parkinson’s.”

Throughout it all, Brooks has helped lead the way—first as cofounder and CEO, then as executive vice chairman overseeing the foundation’s fundraising and marketing functions, before returning to the chief executive role in 2021.

“Whether it’s taking a risk on a new drug or delegating resources to foster collaborations, we know we can move the dial,” she told Tuck Today about the foundation’s approach. “It’s a result of this mindset that we’re seeing the best drug development pipeline in decades.”

Today the pipeline is packed with prospects. More than 50 percent of the 178 therapies in the current pipeline have the potential to slow or stop the disease progression.

Over the years, Brooks’s leadership has been routinely recognized. Among her many accolades include appearing on Forbes’s “50 Women Over 50: Impact List,” NonProfit PRO’s “2020 Executive of the Year,” and designation as a White House “Champion of Change” in 2015. She also regularly appears in top media publications, and has been featured by the New York Times, Bloomberg, Fortune, Fast Company, Variety, and many others.

Before cofounding MJFF, Brooks spent nine years at Goldman Sachs, where she was a vice president in the Fixed Income and Asset Management divisions. She holds an AB in Economics from the College of William & Mary, an MBA from Tuck, and an MS in Marital and Family Therapy from Northwestern University.

Beyond the foundation, Brooks lends her insight and expertise to the Tuck School as a member of the Board of Advisors. She also serves on The Milken Institute’s FasterCures Advisory Board and is a previous co-chair of the 2025 New York’s Emerging Technology Advisory Board.

The 2026 Tuck Investiture ceremony will take place on Saturday, June 6, 2026 at 10:00 a.m. ET. The ceremony will be held on the steps of Tuck Hall. A livestream of the event will be available to community members, friends, and family who would like to tune into the ceremony. For general information including parking, visit the Investiture site and stay tuned for additional details.