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2019 Investiture Ceremony honors four named professors and their benefactors

By Lisa M. Larson

September 13, 2019
  • Beth A. McCormick, PhD, is invested as the Worcester Foundation for Biomedical Research Chair by Thoru Pederson, PhD, left, and Chancellor Michael F. Collins.
  • Lawrence M. Rhein, MD, MPH, is invested as the Stoddard Chair of Pediatrics by Judith King and Chancellor Collins.
  • Celia A. Schiffer, PhD, is invested as the Gladys Smith Martin Chair in Oncology by Dean Terence Flotte and Chancellor Collins.
  • Justin A. Maykel, MD, is invested as the inaugural holder of the Joseph M. Streeter and Mary Streeter DeFeudis Chair in Surgery by Mary Streeter DeFeudis and Chancellor Collins.
  • UMass Chan Medical School has 50 endowed chairs, who stand and are recognized at the conclusion of the investiture ceremony.

Four distinguished faculty members were officially invested into named professorships at the 2019 Investiture Ceremony at UMass Chan Medical School on Thursday, Sept. 12, bringing the total number of endowed chairs at UMass Chan Medical School to 50. The generous donors who make the essential positions a reality were also recognized.

“Each year, Investiture captures the profoundly important role this special group of benefactors plays in contributing to the medical school’s broad impact in the commonwealth and in the world,” said Terence R. Flotte, MD, the Celia and Isaac Haidak Professor of Medical Education, executive deputy chancellor, provost and dean of the School of Medicine, in opening the investiture ceremony in the auditorium of the Albert Sherman Center. “Our success—past, present and future—has been and will continue to be predicated upon by partnership. At this event, we celebrate the exponential power of partnership and the role our donors play in helping a medical school in Worcester play an outsized role in the world.

“By celebrating the faculty members who are joining the august ranks of our named professors and the most generous donors who established the endowed faculty positions, we are espousing the value and virtue of partnership.”

The following professors were invested at the ceremony:

Justin A. Maykel, MD, associate professor of surgery, was invested as the inaugural holder of the Joseph M. Streeter and Mary Streeter DeFeudis Chair in Surgery. This chair supports research that advances the understanding of gastrointestinal disease and offers innovative pathways to treatment.

Beth A. McCormick, PhD, vice chair and professor of microbiology & physiological systems, was invested as the Worcester Foundation for Biomedical Research Chair. Dr. McCormick is the founding director of the UMass Chan Medical School Center for Microbiome Research.

Lawrence M. Rhein, MD, MPH, chair and associate professor of pediatrics, was invested as the Stoddard Chair of Pediatrics. In endowing this chair, the Stoddard Charitable Trust endeavored to support the wide-ranging work of the Department of Pediatrics as it improves the health of children throughout Central Massachusetts and beyond.

Celia A. Schiffer, PhD, professor of biochemistry & molecular pharmacology, was invested as the Gladys Smith Martin Chair in Oncology.

For additional information about the endowed chairs at UMass Chan Medical School, visit the Office of Advancement website.