News

March 3, 2016

Internationally Known Women’s Health Care Advocate and Incoming Wellesley College President Dr. Paula A. Johnson to Deliver Sage’s 2016 Centennial Commencement Address

The Sage Colleges is pleased to announce that Paula A. Johnson, M.D., M.P.H., will deliver its Centennial Commencement address on Saturday, May 14, 2016. The ceremony will begin at 10 a.m. at the Houston Field House on the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute campus in Troy.

Johnson, a cardiologist, currently serves as Executive Director and Chief of the Division of Women’s Health at Brigham and Women’s Hospital, a Harvard teaching hospital and one of the leading academic medical centers in the world. She is recognized internationally as an innovator, bringing her broad range of experience as a researcher, educator, and expert in health care, public health and health policy to bear in the effort to transform the health of women. On July 1, 2016 she will become the 14th president of Wellesley College.

Johnson founded the Connors Center for Women’s Health and Gender Biology. Her vision for achieving sustainable improvement in women’s health is reflected in the Connors Center’s unique approach to all aspects of health throughout the lifespan. This model encompasses discovering how disease is expressed differently in women and men, integrating leading-edge research about women’s health into the delivery of care, influencing health policy, addressing the health of women globally, and developing the next generation of leaders in the field of women’s health through innovative interdisciplinary education and working successfully across complex systems.

“We are honored to have a woman of Dr. Johnson’s achievements deliver The Sage College’s Centennial Commencement address,’ remarked Susan C. Scrimshaw, president of The Sage Colleges. “It is truly fitting to welcome her as we celebrate 100 years of educating women and men of influence and inspiring them to be agents of change in their communities and across the globe.”

Johnson is Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School and Professor of Epidemiology at the Harvard School of Public Health. She is the Grayce A. Young Family Professor in Women’s Health; an endowed Professorship at Harvard Medical School named in honor of Dr. Johnson’s mother. Her research has impacted women across the United States through its influence on the implementation of health care reform. She has also led the development of a case-based curriculum, which is influencing the development of emerging leaders seeking to improve the health of women globally.

Johnson was elected to the National Academy of Medicine, formerly the Institute of Medicine, IOM. She is also featured as a national leader in medicine by the National Library of Medicine and is the recipient of numerous awards recognizing her contributions in women’s health and public health.
Johnson, a native of Brooklyn, attended Harvard and Radcliffe Colleges, received her MD and MPH degrees from Harvard, and trained in internal medicine and cardiovascular medicine at Brigham and Women’s Hospital.