Three faculty members appointed to endowed professorships

Michele Barry, MD, senior associate dean for global health, director of the Center for Innovation in Global Health, professor of medicine and senior fellow at the Woods Institute for the Environment and at the Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies, was appointed the Drs. Ben and A. Jess Shenson Professor. 

Barry’s areas of interest include ethical issues involving research overseas, clinical tropical medicine, emerging infectious diseases, underserved populations, the climate’s impact on health and women’s leadership in global health. 

The Drs. Ben and A. Jess Shenson Professorship was established in 1998 with a gift from A. Jess Shenson, MD, made in his name and that of his late brother. The professorship was created to support a faculty member in the Department of Medicine whose teaching is related to clinical medicine. After growing up in San Francisco, the Shenson brothers both attended Stanford, where they earned their bachelor’s degrees and medical degrees. They practiced together in San Francisco for many years until Ben’s death in 1995. Jess died in 2002. The brothers provided financial support to Stanford for scholars and programs in medicine, art, music and Jewish studies.

Andra Blomkalns, MD, professor and chair of emergency medicine, has been appointed the Redlich Family Professor. 

She was appointed as the inaugural chair of the Department of Emergency Medicine in 2018. Her interests include technology development and medical device innovation.

The professorship was established in 2010 with a gift from Christopher R. Redlich Jr., who at the time was a member of the board of directors of Stanford Hospital and Clinics, now called Stanford Health Care. The professorship was intended for a faculty member in the field of emergency medicine. Redlich is the former president and chairman of MTC Holdings, a port terminal operating company headquartered in San Francisco, which was founded by his grandfather in 1931. His philanthropy is focused in the areas of medicine, conservation, education and science.

Jeffrey Goldberg, MD, PhD, professor and chair of ophthalmology at the Byers Eye Institute, has been appointed the Blumenkranz Smead Professor.

His clinical efforts are focused on patients with cataracts, glaucoma or other retinal and optic nerve diseases. His research focuses on neuroprotection and regeneration of retinal ganglion cells and the optic nerve and on the development of stem cell and nanotherapeutic approaches for eye repair.

The professorship was originally called the HJ Smead Professorship in Ophthalmology. The name changed to the Blumenkranz Smead Professorship when Mark Blumenkranz, MD, a professor emeritus of ophthalmology, retired. It was established with gifts from Ann Smead, the Harold J. Smead Trust and an anonymous donor.The late Harold Smead, PhD, served as president, CEO and chairman of Kaiser Aerospace and Electronics Corp. Ann Smead, his widow, is a managing partner of Mill Creek Systems LLC in Vail, Colorado.