David P. Hajjar, Ph.D.
Executive Vice Chair of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine
It is with great pleasure that I announce the appointment of David P. Hajjar, Ph.D. as Executive Vice Chair of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, effective immediately. In this capacity, David and I have agreed to work closely on developing strategic and programmatic departmental initiatives, including space development, faculty recruitment and retention, and education. Hence, Dr. Hajjar and I will be closely engaged in further developing a strategic plan for the future direction of the department. He and I have agreed that this will not be done in a vacuum, that we will all work toward this common goal.
David knows our department well. He joined Cornell University Medical College in the Department of Pathology in 1978 as a research fellow, was granted tenure in 1986, and promoted to professor in 1989, one of the youngest to receive tenure in the history of the Medical College. His research focused on the role of herpes virus infection in atherogenesis, and delineating the role of nitric oxide in inflammation and cholesterol trafficking. From 1978 to the present, he has garnered more than $70 million dollars in grant support from extramural sources. In the 1990’s, David’s administrative acumen and leadership abilities as the founding Director of the Center of Vascular Biology were recognized by the medical center. He served with distinction as Dean of the Cornell University Graduate School of Medical Sciences from 1997 to 2013. From 2000 to 2007, he served as Research Dean and Vice Provost of the Faculty; and from 2003 to 2013, he served as Executive Vice Dean and Executive Vice Provost at the Medical College. David is now Dean Emeritus and Professor of Biochemistry and Pathology and Senior Advisor to Dean/Provost Augustine Choi. In 2016, he was promoted to University Distinguished Professor by Cornell University.
Dr. Hajjar was elected to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences in 2016; and, he is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Medicine, and a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science. He received the prestigious Federation of American Societies of Experimental Biology (FASEB)'s Warner Lambert/Parke Davis Award in 1991 for his discoveries on the role of herpesviruses in the pathogenesis of vascular disease. In 2003, Dr. Hajjar received the Chugai Award, which is presented to a member of the American Society of Pathologists (FASEB) who has a distinguished scientific career, who exhibits both excellence in mentoring and education, and outstanding research achievements in experimental pathology. Dr. Hajjar has trained over 30 students and postdoctoral fellows in experimental pathology. He has also been the recipient of several other awards from the American Chemical Society, the American Heart Association, and he received the Teacher-Scientist Award from the Andrew Mellon Foundation, twice. His scholarship at Cornell has been exemplary.
I am pleased that Dr. Hajjar accepted this new role.
Sincerely,
Massimo Loda, M.D.