Ralph is Chairman of the Department of Neurology, Senior Associate Dean for Clinical and Translational Science, and Executive Director of the Evelyn F. McKnight Brain Institute at the Miller School of Medicine, University of Miami. He holds the Olemberg Family Chair in Neurological Disorders, Miller Professor of Neurology, Public Health Sciences, Human Genetics, and Neurosurgery, and Chief of the Neurology Service at Jackson Memorial Hospital. 

After graduating Cornell in Bio-electrical Engineering with distinction in 1979, he completed his medical degree cum laude at Boston University in 1983, and Neurology training at Columbia Presbyterian Medical Center. He also holds an MS in Epidemiology from the Mailman School of Public Health at Columbia. Prior to 2007, he spent 23 years at Columbia and rose to Professor of Neurology and Chief of the Stroke & Critical Care Division. 

Dr. Sacco is a leader in the treatment and prevention of stroke. His contributions have elucidated the determinants of stroke and cognitive disorders and shaped brain health awareness campaigns especially in underserved populations. Continuously NIH-funded since 1989, he has led large interdisciplinary programs including the Northern Manhattan Study, the Florida-Puerto Rico Collaboration to Reduce Stroke Disparities, and the University of Miami Clinical Translational Science Institute.  

He has published extensively with 726 scholarly articles and been the recipient of numerous awards including, the Feinberg Award of Excellence in Stroke, the Chairman’s Award from the American Heart Association, the NINDS Javits Award in Neuroscience, AAN Wartenberg Lecture Award, and WSO Global Leadership Award. He is a fellow of the American Heart Association, the American Academy of Neurology, the American Neurological Association, and the World Stroke Organization.  He is an elected member of the American Association of Physicians and National Academy of Medicine. He was the first neurologist to serve as President of the American Heart Association and just completed his term as President of the American Academy of Neurology.

Ralph lives with his spouse, Scott Dutcher, in Miami Beach.