UMass Memorial Health Makes $5M Gift to Support Five New Endowed Chairs

The UMass Memorial gift, in partnership with University of Massachusetts Foundation, establishes new endowed chairs which support efforts to impact more patients across the region.

WORCESTER, Mass., September 26, 2024 – UMass Memorial Health (UMMH) today announced that five new UMMH endowed chairs have been established through a $5 million philanthropic gift to our primary academic partner, UMass Chan Medical School (UMass Chan), in partnership with the University of Massachusetts Foundation. The new endowed chairs represent Family Medicine, Anesthesiology and Perioperative Medicine, Radiology, Neurology and Radiation Oncology. The University of Massachusetts Board of Trustees voted last Thursday, September 19, to approve the creation of the new chairs.

The inaugural holders of the five new UMass Memorial chairs are as follows: 

• UMass Memorial Chair in Neurology: A.M. Barrett, MD
• UMass Memorial Chair in Radiation Oncology: Thomas FitzGerald, MD
• UMass Memorial Ledwith Chair in Family and Community Medicine: M. Diane McKee, MD
• UMass Memorial Chair in Radiology: Max Rosen, MD, MPH
• UMass Memorial Kaur Chair in Anesthesia and Perioperative Medicine: J. Matthias Walz, MD

This gift from UMMH is designed to support highly accomplished senior clinicians who have dual appointments at UMass Chan and UMass Memorial and aims to invest in the impact these accomplished faculty leaders can achieve on behalf of patients throughout the region and beyond. 

“The gift recognizes our exceptional faculty and the extraordinary, long-standing partnership and shared destiny of UMass Memorial Health and UMass Chan,” said Michael F. Collins, MD, UMass Chan chancellor and UMass senior vice president for health sciences. “I would like to express my deep gratitude to Eric Dickson, MD, who, as president and chief executive officer of UMass Memorial Health and a proud alum of the T.H. Chan School of Medicine, appreciates our faculty colleagues and seeks to invest in all they are able to achieve on behalf of patients in Central Massachusetts and around the globe.”

“Today is a great day. With the approval of these endowed chairs by the University of Massachusetts Board of Trustees, we are further strengthening our deep relationship with the University and the Medical School as we forge together a successful path in what has become a challenging health care environment,” said Dr. Eric Dickson, president and CEO of UMass Memorial Health. “This investment demonstrates our shared values and commitment to our faculty and to the future of our organizations.”

“We are deeply appreciative of the generous gift from UMass Memorial Health that will enable the establishment of five new endowed chairs and are grateful for the partnership of Dr. Eric Dickson,” said UMass President Marty Meehan. “I’m also proud that the UMass Foundation was able to support this generous gift with $2.5 million in matching funds in recognition of the deep and meaningful relationship between UMass Chan Medical School and UMass Memorial Health.”

About the Chairs 

A.M. Barrett, MD, Chair and Professor of neurology, for appointment to the UMass Memorial Chair in Neurology. Since joining UMass Chan in 2022, Dr. Barrett has also served as Chief of the Neurology Service at the VA Central Western Massachusetts Healthcare System. Her work as a physician-scientist brings together training in cognitive neurology and neuropsychology, neurology, medicine and brain injury. Her research program encompasses brain-behavior relationships relevant to spatial cognition and rehabilitation of spatial neglect; person-centered care and outcomes relevant to function and life participation; and identification and management of hidden disabilities and mechanisms of deficit unawareness. Previously she was on the faculty of Penn State, Rutgers and Emory Universities.

Thomas FitzGerald, MD’80, Chair and Professor of radiation oncology, for appointment to the UMass Memorial Chair in Radiation Oncology. Dr. FitzGerald has served as chair of the Department of Radiation Oncology since 2004 and has been one of the primary investigators for the Imaging and Radiation Oncology Core and the National Clinical Trials Network of the National Cancer Institute. Additionally, he regularly collaborates with basic science faculty. He has published more than 200 manuscripts about clinical, translational and basic science discoveries, earning him a ranking among the top 5% of research scientists for citations, according to ResearchGate. Dr. FitzGerald is a 1980 graduate of the T.H. Chan School of Medicine and the recipient of the 2019 UMass Chan Alumni Distinguished Service Award in recognition of excellence in the UMass Chan mission areas.

M. Diane McKee, MD, Chair and Professor of family medicine and community health since 2019, will be the inaugural holder of the UMass Memorial Ledwith Chair in Family and Community Medicine. Dr. McKee is engaged in each of our mission areas and has given special attention to increasing a focus on diversity and equity in the practice of family medicine, and to building primary care and community health research and scholarship. She serves on the Board of Trustees for UMass Memorial’s Community Healthlink. Dr. McKee joined UMass Chan after a successful tenure at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine. This new endowed chair is named in memory of James Ledwith, MD, a respected and beloved faculty member in family medicine and community health who died unexpectedly this summer following a bicycle accident.  

Max Rosen, MD, MPH, Chair and Professor of radiology, has been appointed to the UMass Memorial Chair in Radiology. Dr. Rosen joined UMass Chan in 2012 from Beth Israel Medical Center and Harvard Medical School. During his tenure as chair, Dr. Rosen has nurtured and guided a vibrant, growing department with more than 90 radiologists, 40 scientists, several UMass Chan pre-clinical teaching faculty, and dozens of residents and fellows. The Department of Radiology now performs approximately 900,000 studies per year, providing comprehensive diagnostic imaging and interventional radiology services throughout the UMass Memorial Health system, while conducting research and teaching the next generation of caregivers. 

J. Matthias Walz, MD, Chair and Professor anesthesiology and perioperative medicine, has been named to the UMass Memorial Kaur Chair in Anesthesia and Perioperative Medicine. Dr. Walz has led the department since 2018 and helped to spearhead the integration of health informatics into patient safety and research initiatives. He is active in numerous professional organizations and has invested in the department's research expertise, supporting NIH and PCORI-funded grants. The endowed chair that Dr. Walz holds is named after Shubjeet Kaur, MD, the late former Chair of anesthesiology and perioperative medicine who served as a leader at our organizations for 30 years and was a beloved colleague who left a legacy of passion for teaching and patient care.

About UMass Memorial Health

UMass Memorial Health is the largest not-for-profit health care system in Central Massachusetts with 17,000 employees and 2,100 physicians. Our comprehensive system includes UMass Memorial Medical Center, UMass Memorial Health – Harrington, UMass Memorial Health – HealthAlliance-Clinton Hospital, UMass Memorial Health – Marlborough Hospital, UMass Memorial Health – Community Healthlink, and UMass Memorial Medical Group. We are the clinical partner of UMass Chan Medical School. For more information, visit www.ummhealth.org. 

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