President Elect
COMSEP turns pediatric educators’ interests and aspirations into reality. I am fortunate to be one of those pediatricians. Taking a chance on attending the COMSEP Annual Meeting in Ottawa eleven years ago, I met my “people” and purpose. COMSEP gave me the opportunity to build service and leadership skills, co-directing the Core Clerkship Collaborative and participating on the Annual Meeting and Executive Committees. COMSEP also fostered my growth through external leadership on the Alliance for Clinical Education’s revised position paper on clerkship directors’ expectations and the COMSEP/NBME Test Materials Development Committee. In these roles, I have appreciated the importance of teamwork and diverse opinions in achieving goals and embracing new opportunities. Most importantly, I have made lifelong friends and furthered COMSEP’s inclusivity mission by introducing diverse colleagues and trainees to this amazing educator group.
The challenges facing pediatric undergraduate medical education (i.e., decreased student interest, reduced clinical training sites, financial constraints) appear daunting. However, the AMSPDC Pediatric Workforce Initiative represents a prime opportunity for COMSEP to lead the reimagination of medical student instruction and create a new generation of pediatric clinicians, scientists, and-yes-educators. I have national leadership experience as chair of the National Medical Association Pediatric Section. I now am asking you for the privilege to serve as COMSEP President-Elect, maintaining COMSEP at the forefront of directing change in pediatric medical student education. By growing and strengthening our ranks through collaboration and conversations, we can address issues and create solutions benefitting our colleagues, learners, and patients.
Thank you!
I am truly honored and grateful to be considered for the position of President of COMSEP. I have been part of this incredible organization since 2005, and it has played a significant role in my growth as an educator. Over these past 20 years, the people and the work of COMSEP have inspired and energized me. We have been led by a succession of strong leaders who have served to better our organization. I would be honored to have the opportunity to lead COMSEP, building on the work of those who came before me and supporting the continued success and achievements of COMSEP and its members.
I am a pediatrician and faculty member at the University of Ottawa. I have served in many leadership roles including as the Chair of the Pediatric Undergraduate Program Directors of Canada (PUPDOC), as a Pediatric Clerkship Director and as a Pediatric Undergraduate Medical Education Director. I am currently the Clerkship Director, Anglophone Stream for the Faculty of Medicine in Ottawa. I have served on the COMSEP Executive Committee for the past two years.
I strongly believe my leadership style, which relies on collaboration, communication and service, would allow me to effectively lead COMSEP. As a leader, I aim to create an environment of mutual respect, valuing diverse experiences, abilities and opinions to enhance the effectiveness of the team. Through my many experiences within COMSEP, I understand our strengths and the many opportunities and challenges our organization faces. We have an opportunity now to enhance our collaborations with medical education organizations both within and outside of the U.S.A. This will allow COMSEP to gain greater recognition for the outstanding contributions we make to medical education and to have greater impact in the national and international medical education community. I believe I have the passion and leadership skills that COMSEP requires to inspire our members, harness our many talents, and to set clear strategic goals, all serving to achieve COMSEP’s vision: improving health for all patients through exceptional pediatric education.
Thank you for considering me for this important role.
At-Large Executive Committee
I have been a member of COMSEP since 2015, and I am proud to call it my professional education home for the past 10 years. By fully engaging in my first annual meeting, I came back to my home institution prepared to ask the right questions of UME leadership. I also had access to valuable resources I could use to develop pediatric clerkship for our inaugural class. The peer mentorship I received through my participation in the Professional and Faculty Development Collaborative (PFDC) helped to advance in my academic career. Through collaborations with fellow members, I have developed and presented workshops at COMSEP, PAS and ICAM. My leadership roles on the Professional and Faculty Develop Collaborative have allowed me to pay it forward - mentoring new members, facilitating meetings, and utilizing my organizational skills on the Annual Meeting Committee.
My journey from clerkship director to various Assistant Dean roles within educational affairs would not have been possible without my involvement in COMSEP. I am running for a seat on the Executive Committee because I believe in the COMSEP guiding principles. I find value in this organization where all members are celebrated for the unique contributions they bring to its success. If elected, I would like to enhance the educational content COMSEP offers outside of the Annual Meeting and continue to ensure its financial viability for the future. Thank you for your consideration.
I am honored to be included on the COMSEP ballot for an open position on the Executive Committee. Being part of COMSEP over the past 8 years has been both rewarding and energizing, allowing me to form meaningful connections with colleagues who share my passion for medical student education in pediatrics. I only wish I had joined sooner!
I am a lifelong New Englander and practice clinically as a hospitalist and toxicologist at Boston Children’s Hospital. My involvement in medical education began during my chief residency, and I currently serve as the Pediatric Clerkship Director for Harvard Medical School, Clerkship Site Director at Boston Children’s, and co-director of the Year 2 Clinical Skills Course for HMS students. Since 2021, I have also served as the Associate Dean for Undergraduate Medical Education at Boston Children’s Hospital, overseeing medical student education at BCH across all four years of the curriculum.
Within COMSEP, I co-lead the Pre-Clerkship and Clinical Skills Collaborative and serve on the Membership Committee. Over the past year, I helped create the role of AAP SOPT Liaison to COMSEP as part of our efforts to better connect COMSEP with students and trainees. I am thrilled to work with our first liaison this year! Additionally, I have been involved in pediatric workforce efforts and currently co-chair the APA Medical Student Education SIG.
COMSEP and its members have given me so much, and I would be thrilled to have the opportunity to continue contributing to this vital community through a role on the Executive Committee.
I would be delighted to have the opportunity to serve COMSEP and give back to the membership as a member of the Executive Committee at Large. I am an Assistant Professor of Pediatrics at the Boston University Chobanian & Avedisian School of Medicine and a Pediatric Emergency Medicine physician at Boston Medical Center. When I first attended COMSEP in 2013 as a new clerkship director, I was immediately struck by how the warmth of the group and the way mentorship was woven into the fabric of the community helped me gain my footing. When my job morphed to becoming the Director of Pediatric Undergraduate Medical Education for our pediatric department, COMSEP colleagues and conferences again served as the reliable resources that helped me improve and evolve our program, while providing me the opportunity to share back what I had learned in the form of workshops and participation in collaboratives. My interest was piqued by the Career Advising Collaborative (CAC), as I have always loved advising medical students and thinking about preparedness for residency. As a leader of the CAC, I represented COMSEP at the 2020 “Pediatrics 2025 AMSPDC Workforce Initiative” initial meeting. Over the subsequent years, I have continued to work with the Workforce Initiative, the associated Residency Recruitment Action Team, and as a co-faculty director of FuturePedsRes. I have found this to be particularly interesting work in this period of evolution both post-pandemic and with the new ERAS format, and really enjoy the collaborative work with program directors and other educational leaders while representing the interests of applicants and advisors. It has also prompted me to think more about the future pediatrician over the continuum and prompted my volunteer and academic work with preclinical learners and early introduction to pediatrics. Bringing information from this national effort back to COMSEP through presentations and workshops (in partnership with other COMSEP colleagues on these committees) has been a great opportunity to give back but I would love to be able to do more.
In 2023, I transitioned to a new role overseeing fourth-year pediatric applicants, curriculum development, and advising at BU—an evolution shaped by my experiences with COMSEP. I am deeply grateful for the organization’s impact on my career and for the lasting friendships I have made, and it would be a privilege to contribute further by supporting the growth and success of my COMSEP colleagues through the Executive Committee.
I first joined COMSEP in 2020 and immediately knew I had found my academic home. Through COMSEP, I have met so many people who I now identify as my mentor/sponsor/advisor/role model, and most importantly, friend. I have grown so much through various project collaborations, workshops, and serving in leadership opportunities on the Research and Scholarship Collaborative and Annual Planning Committee. Without everyone’s support, I never would have thought myself capable of serving in these roles and would never have pursued these opportunities. I wish to give back to this wonderful community to ensure that the legacy of COMSEP and its awesomeness lives on through its current and future members. As an EC member-at-large, I look forward to working with all of you to better serve your needs, help you grow & develop further, and ensure that we continue to have future generations of Pediatricians.
Nominations and Awards Committee Member
I am an Associate Professor of Clinical Pediatrics at Temple University, a position I’ve held since 2016 after completing my pediatric residency. In addition to teaching, I serve as the Clerkship Director for the Physician Assistant Program and as an Academic Coach for Undergraduate Medical Education. My dedication to education and mentorship has earned me honors such as the Russell & Pearl Moses Memorial Endowed Medical Award in 2023 and the Department of Pediatrics Teaching Excellence Award in 2020.
As a passionate advocate for medical education, I focus on addressing health disparities and social determinants of health. I believe in the transformative power of compassionate, data-driven medical education to promote societal change. Promoting diversity, equity, and inclusion is central to my work, and I strive to create supportive, inclusive spaces that empower educators and learners alike.
My involvement with the Council on Medical Student Education in Pediatrics (COMSEP) has allowed me to expand my contributions to the field. I led a workshop at the 2023 COMSEP conference and continue to engage in its initiatives to advance pediatric education.
Known for my communication, collaboration, and relationship-building skills, I am committed to fostering mentorship and uplifting diverse voices in academic medicine. By aligning with COMSEP’s vision, I hope to continue growing as a leader, educator, and advocate, ensuring a more inclusive and equitable future for medical education.
I am so excited for the opportunity to run for the Nominations and Awards Committee. I am a Pediatric Hospitalist at the University of Louisville and have served as the Clerkship Director for the Department for over eight years now. I enjoy teaching in the context of patient and family centered rounds, with an emphasis on communication and compassion. I have a special interest in serving individuals with disabilities and enjoy working with children with Medical Complexity. I serve as an Attending for Louisville’s Complex Care long-term care facility and additionally am a Clinical Director for Special Olympics Kentucky’s MedFest Healthy Athletes Program. Given this interest, I am committed to fostering environments that promote inclusivity and diversity and would continue to use this lens when reviewing nominations for the committee to make sure our organization’s commitment is upheld.
I attended my first COMSEP meeting in 2017 and (after getting over my initial surprise by the flash mob) quickly realized I had found a community where I belonged. I have been a member of the Core Clerkship Collaborative since that first meeting and have more recently volunteered with the Student Engagement SPAT and joined the Survey & Scholarship Committee. I would love the opportunity to serve such an amazing group of people, and what better way than by celebrating the individuals and accomplishments of this community! Thank you for your time and consideration.