Dr. Richard G. Fessler serves as Professor and Vice Chair of Neurosurgery at the Feinberg School of Medicine of Northwestern University. Prior to assuming this position he was the John Harper Seeley Professor and Chief of Neurosurgery at the University of Chicago Hospitals and Clinics. He previously founded and directed the Institute for Spine Care at the Chicago Institute of Neurosurgery and Neuroresearch (CINN) and was Professor of Neurological Surgery at Rush Medical College in Chicago, after serving as Director of Clinical Services and Education at the University of Florida Brain Institute. Additionally, at the University of Florida, he held the Dunspaugh-Dalton Chair of Brain and Spinal Surgery and served as Professor in the Department of Neurological Surgery. Dr. Fessler completed his Medical Doctorate with honors, and Surgical and Neurosurgical residencies at the University of Chicago. In addition to surgical training, Dr. Fessler completed a Doctorate of Philosophy in Pharmacology and Physiology, and a Masters of Science in Psychology. Continuing education after earning doctoral degrees, Dr. Fessler held research Fellowships at the University of Chicago Medical Center in Neurological Surgery and Psychiatry. The Chicago Surgical Society honored Dr. Fessler with the Excellence in Surgical Research award. Dr. Fessler is internationally known for his contributions to endoscopic and microendoscopic surgical developments. He has developed many of the current minimally invasive surgical techniques, including “minimally invasive decompression of lumbar stenosis”, “minimally invasive microendoscopic posterior cervical discectomy”, “minimally invasive decompression of cervical stenosis”, “unilateral transforaminal lumbar interbody fusion”, “minimally invasive correction of scoliosis”, and has contributed to the development of many more. The Kambin Foundation awarded Dr. Fessler their annual research award for his research in the field of minimally invasive spinal surgery Dr. Fessler is also well known for his pioneering research into human embryonic spinal cord transplantation for the treatment of spinal cord injury. He was co-principal investigator on the first human transplant study to evaluate the safety and efficacy of human embryonic spinal cord transplantation for the treatment of syringomyelia, and is the only physician in the United States to have performed these procedures. Currently he is lead clinical investigator on the first “stem cell” transplantation trial for the treatment of human spinal cord injury. Routinely listed in “Best Doctors of America”, Dr. Fessler is also listed in the Consumer Research Council of America “Guide to America’s Top Surgeons”, and “Who’s Who”. Dr. Fessler is a member of the Academy of Neurological Surgery, Congress of Neurological Surgeons, American Association of Neurological Surgeons, Neurosurgical Society of America, Joint Section on Disorders of the Spine and Peripheral Nerves, American Surgical Association, American College of Surgeons, Society of Neurological Surgeons, and the Society of Minimally Invasive Spine Surgery. He has held leadership positions for several of these professional organizations, and has been a course director or faculty member for several hundred courses sponsored by these groups. For the Federal Government, Dr. Fessler is currently on Advisory Committees for the FDA and HHS. Dr. Fessler has written seventeen books and contributed over 135 articles to peer-reviewed journals, and 130 book chapters to medical texts. Dr. Fessler lends his expertise to several editorial boards. He is frequently invited for speaking engagements and visiting professorships worldwide. In addition to all of the above accomplishments, Dr. Fessler served as a Medical Specialist and Flight Surgeon for NASA/Space Shuttle.