Dear colleagues:

As announced in January, Lucky Jain, MD, MBA will be retiring from his role as chair of the Department of Pediatrics at the end of the year. Lucky leaves a lasting impact on Emory and the pediatric community, and I am immensely grateful for his vision and leadership.

After an extensive national search, I am pleased to announce Shari Barkin, MD, MSHS has accepted the position of chair of the Department of Pediatrics effective Dec. 2, 2024. She will also serve as Pediatrician in Chief at Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta. Dr. Barkin comes to Emory and Children’s from Children’s Hospital of Richmond at Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) where she serves as the Physician in Chief and chair of the Department of Pediatrics at VCU School of Medicine.

Dr. Barkin is trained as a health services and health outcomes researcher and is a member of the National Academy of Medicine. She focuses on community-based, family-centered obesity prevention interventions applying a complexity science lens. Dr. Barkin received her medical degree from the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, completed her pediatric residency at Children’s Hospital of Los Angeles and a Robert Wood Johnson Clinical Scholars fellowship at University of California Los Angeles David Geffen School of Medicine.

Please join me in welcoming Dr. Barkin to Emory. I am excited that we have been able to recruit an internationally recognized clinician-investigator in pediatrics. We look forward to her leadership in continuing to drive excellence in clinical care and in our academic missions.

Sandra L. Wong, MD, MS
Dean, Emory School of Medicine
Chief Academic Officer, Emory Healthcare