June 20, 2025 - Dr. Karl Sylvester Appointed Chief Research Operations Officer at SMCH

Dear Stanford MCHRI Community,

We are pleased to share an important update regarding our leadership in maternal and child health research. Karl Sylvester, MD, has been appointed as the Chief Research Operations Officer (CROO) at Stanford Medicine Children's Health (SMCH).   We are thankful to SMCH Executive Leadership, including Paul King, Rick Majzun, and Mitch Cohen for creating this role as further demonstration of their commitment to the research mission.

Dr. Sylvester brings a wealth of experience and a strong commitment to advancing our research initiatives. Since 2016, he has served as the Associate Dean for Maternal Child Health and has directed the Clinical Research Support Office at the Maternal and Child Health Research Institute since 2018. His leadership in Clinical Translational Research (CTR) has been instrumental in driving numerous successful research projects at Stanford.

As CROO, Dr. Sylvester will focus on enhancing our research operations, with key objectives including:

• Elevating the quality and impact of our maternal and child health research portfolio.
• Integrating research activities more closely with clinical operations to foster collaboration and innovation.
• Building bridges among diverse stakeholders, including faculty, industry partners, and funding sources, to create a robust support network for our research community.
• Working to remove roadblocks to and increase efficiencies for the conduct of clinical and translational research across maternal and child health for Stanford Medicine Children’s Health.
   

We believe that Dr. Sylvester's leadership will significantly benefit our research community and enhance our ability to deliver impactful healthcare solutions. His appointment is a vital step in our ongoing efforts to strengthen our research capabilities and align them with our clinical mission.

For additional resources and support available to our research teams, please visit MCHRI’s Clinical Research Support Office Resources.

We encourage you to reach out to Dr. Sylvester and engage with him as we move forward together in our mission to advance maternal and child health research.

Best Regards,

Mary Leonard, MD, MSCE
Director, MCHRI; Professor and Chair of Pediatrics, Stanford School of Medicine;
Physician-In-Chief, Lucile Packard Children's Hospital Stanford