Ronald Reagan and his wife, Nancy, have been awarded a prize by Harvard University for their openess about the former president’s fight against Alzheimer’s disease, the school said late Wednesday.
The Reagans are the first recipients of the David Mahoney Prize, awarded by the Harvard Mahoney Neuroscience Institute.
Nancy Reagan will accept the award on behalf of her husband at a dinner in New York City on June 5.
The former president disclosed in November that he was suffering from Alzheimer’s, a disease of the central nervous system marked by memory loss and language dysfunction.
“President and Mrs. Reagan have again taken the lead in a major cause, and we are in their debt,” said David Mahoney, the chairman and chief executive officer of the Charles A. Dana Foundation and the Dana Alliance for Brain Initiatives.
The Dana Foundation awards grants in support of brain research. The Alliance is a non-profit organization of more than 135 leading neuroscientists committed to education about brain research.
