Dr. Young Kwang Chae is the co-director of the Early Phase Clinical Trials Units of the Robert H. Lurie Comprehensive Cancer Center of Northwestern University. He is also the co-director of the Developmental Therapeutics Fellowship program of the division of hematology-oncology at the Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine. His primary focus is on designing and conducting innovative early-phase clinical trials and translational medicine research. Dr. Chae is in charge of many targeted therapy clinical trials, immunotherapy combination trials, and biomarker studies within and outside Northwestern University. He is one of the study chairs and translational medicine PI of the SWOG S1609 DART trial for rare tumors. He is also an active member of the SWOG lung committee and the vice chair of the early therapeutics & rare cancer committee and lung committee. He believes that his clinic is his lab and wants to bridge the gap between cutting-edge science and clinical medicine. Above all, his passion is to help desperate patients including those with rare cancers who do not have standard-of-care treatment options or have become refractory to all existing treatment options with novel treatments through well-designed clinical trials bringing the best science to patients. Dr. Chae plans to facilitate the incorporation of novel translational science into high-impact clinical trials.
The 14th United States Asst. Secretary of Health and Human Services
Dr. Howard K. Koh is the Harvey V. Fineberg Professor of the Practice of Public Health Leadership at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health (Harvard Chan) as well as Faculty Co-Chair of the Harvard Advanced Leadership Initiative. At Harvard Chan, he is also the inaugural Chair of the Initiative on Health and Homelessness and formerly headed the Center for Public Health Preparedness. He served as the The 14th United States Asst. Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) (2009-2014) after being nominated by President Barack Obama and confirmed by the US Senate, and as Commissioner of Public Health for the Commonwealth of Massachusetts (1997-2003) after being appointed by Governor William Weld. He was also appointed by President Bill Clinton to the National Cancer Advisory Board (2000-2002).
A graduate of Yale College (where he was President of the Yale Glee Club) and the Yale University School of Medicine, he trained at Boston City Hospital and Massachusetts General Hospital, earned board certifications in four medical fields, served as Principal Investigator of research grants totaling $27M and published more than 300 articles in the medical and public health literature. He has received over 70 awards and honors for interdisciplinary accomplishments in medicine and public health including six honorary doctorate degrees, the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Legacy Award for National Service, the Sedgwick Memorial Medal from the American Public Health Association (its highest honor), the Champion Award from the Campaign for Tobacco Free Kids and the Distinguished Service Award from the American Cancer Society.
As part of recognition as a “Medical All Star” by the Boston Red Sox for promoting the early detection and prevention of melanoma, he delivered the ceremonial first pitch at Fenway Park (2003). In 2019, HHS established the annual Dr. Howard K. Koh Award for Excellence in Leadership sponsored by the Federal Asian Pacific American Council. He and his wife Dr Claudia Arrigg are the proud parents of three adult children and the proud grandparents of five grandchildren.
Leslie Cho, MD, is Director of the Cleveland Clinic’s Women’s Cardiovascular Center. She is also Section Head, Preventive Cardiology and Rehabilitation and Chief Quality Officer in the Robert and Suzanne Tomsich Department of Cardiovascular Medicine at Cleveland Clinic. She is a professor of Medicine at Cleveland Clinic Lerner School of Medicine Case Western Reserve Medical School. Dr. Cho is board-certified in interventional cardiology, cardiovascular medicine, and internal medicine.
Dr. Cho received her undergraduate degree in interdisciplinary studies from the University of California, Los Angeles, graduating cum laude. She received her medical degree from the University of Chicago Pritzker School of Medicine, and took her residency in internal medicine at the University of Washington Medical Center where she received the John Humphrey Award as Most Outstanding Internal Medicine Resident. Her clinical training continued when she accepted a fellowship in cardiology, followed by a fellowship in interventional cardiology and peripheral disease, both from Cleveland Clinic.
Prior to her appointment to Cleveland Clinic in 2005 as Director of the Women’s Cardiovascular Center, Dr. Cho was Assistant Professor of Medicine, Section on Interventional Cardiology in the Division of Cardiology at Loyola University Medical Center, where she also served as both Director of Carotid Intervention and Director of Interventional Cardiology Research.
I am a Hospitalist within the Department of Medicine at Brigham and Women’s Hospital (BWH). After completing residency training in Internal Medicine at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Weill Cornell Medical Center, I joined the faculty at BWH and Harvard Medical School in 2023 to fulfill my holistic passion to provide excellent patient care, empower trainees to fulfill their potential, conduct clinical research focused on healthcare disparities, and lead innovative quality improvement initiatives aimed to advance healthcare. I have been a proud KAMA member since 2021.
Co-Research Chair
Dr. Anthony Choi is an Assistant Professor of Medicine at the Center for Liver Disease and Transplantation at Weill Cornell Medicine. After receiving his B.S. from Brown University and MD from Weill Cornell Medical College, he completed his medicine residency and gastroenterology fellowship at Weill Cornell Medicine. Dr. Choi completed his advanced fellowship training in Transplant Hepatology at New York-Presbyterian Hospital/Columbia University, where he was chief hepatology fellow.
He specializes in the management of patients with liver diseases including patients with cirrhosis and those who may need liver transplantation. As a member of the Asian Liver Health Initiative at New York Presbyterian, Dr. Choi is passionate about providing accessible, world-class liver care to the local Asian community, and has a special interest in the care of patients with hepatocellular carcinoma.
Professor of Medicine, Weill Cornell Medicine
Dr. Augustine M.K. Choi served as the Stephen and Suzanne Weiss Dean of Weill Cornell Medicine and Provost for Medical Affairs of Cornell University from 2017-2022. Prior to his appointment as dean, he served as the Sanford I. Weill Chairman and Professor of Medicine in the Joan and Sanford I. Weill Department of Medicine at Weill Cornell Medicine and as physician-in-chief of NewYork-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell Medical Center. Before joining NYP/WCM, Dr. Choi was the Parker B. Francis Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School and Chief of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine at the Brigham and Women’s Hospital.
Dr. Choi received his MD from the University of Louisville and completed his Internal Medicine residency at Duke University Medical Center. He then pursued his Pulmonary/Critical Care Medicine fellowship at Johns Hopkins and was a faculty member at Johns Hopkins and at Yale. Dr. Choi served as Chief, Division of Pulmonary, Allergy and Critical Care Medicine at the University of Pittsburgh and Harvard Medical School and Brigham and Women’s Hospital. He has a longstanding commitment to the training of physician-scientists. His research interest has focused on the regulation and function of stress response genes in response to oxidative stress. He has translated the two decades of basic discoveries made in the signaling pathway and function of HO/CO to human patients with lung and vascular diseases. His research team has recently completed 2 NIH supported Phase II clinical trials, in the treatment for human sepsis and lung fibrosis. Dr. Choi also has interest in genomic approaches in identifying candidate genes important in the pathogenesis of lung diseases. He has authored more than 365 peer-reviewed manuscripts and is currently the Principal Investigator of multiple NIH RO1’s and NIH/NHLBI Program Project grant.
Dr. Choi is a member of the American Society of Clinical Investigation (ASCI) and the Association of American Physicians (AAP). He is a recipient of the American Thoracic Society (ATS) Recognition Award for Scientific Accomplishments and Amberson Lecture, the top research award in the international ATS community, and the 2011 Ho-Am Prize for Medicine. Dr. Choi is an elected member of the National Academy of Medicine.
Dr. Justin Choi is an academic hospitalist and medical educator who specializes in medical decision making and clinical reasoning education and research. He received a CTSC KL2 career development award to study the diagnostic performance of biomarkers in care delivered to hospitalized adults. He conducts research on innovative approaches to improving teaching and assessment of clinical reasoning among medical students and residents. His work also focuses on teamwork in the diagnostic process, and is supported by the Society of Bedside Medicine and Society to Improve Diagnosis in Medicine.
Dr. Choi is the Chief of the Division of Oncodermatology at Robert H. Lurie Comprehensive Cancer Center and Chief of the Division of Medical Dermatology within the Department of Dermatology at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine. She specializes in providing skin care for patients undergoing cancer treatment. Her expertise includes knowledge in recognizing and managing side effects from chemotherapy, radiation, infections in immunosuppressed patients, and toxicities that may arise as a result of stem cell or solid organ transplantation. She directs several clinical research trials investigating the prevention and treatment of cancer therapy-related side effects. Dr. Choi also specializes in treating patients with skin cancer and is an integral member of the Northwestern Melanoma Unit and the Melanoma Tumor Board. She runs a Pigmented Lesion Clinic, in which she provides advanced skin cancer surveillance for patients with a history of melanoma, hundreds of nevi, and high risk factors for melanoma development. She is experienced with surgical treatment of skin cancers, as well as non-surgical methods to treat skin cancer and precancerous lesions, including intralesional and topical immunotherapy and field treatments. Dr. Choi also runs a full medical and surgical dermatology practice and is experienced with the use of complex dermatologic therapy, including biologic therapy, immunosuppressive medications, intralesional therapies, and phototherapy.
Dr. Choi received her BA degree from Harvard University and her MD degree from Yale University School of Medicine. She completed internship in Internal Medicine at Brigham and Women’s Hospital/Harvard Medical School and residency in Dermatology at Yale, where she served as Chief Resident. For 8 years, she served as Assistant Professor of Dermatology in the Department of Dermatology at Yale. In 2015, she moved to Chicago to join the Department of Dermatology at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, where she is now Professor of Dermatology. Outside of work, she enjoys reading, hiking, and spending time with her husband, 3 beautiful daughters, and adorable puppy.
Scientific Chair
Dr. Chun is a plastic and reconstructive surgeon at the Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Associate Professor of Surgery at Harvard Medical School. She is the Section Chief of the Division of Plastic and Reconstructive surgery at Brigham and Women’s Faulkner Hospital with a clinical and research focus on reconstructive breast surgery. She received her undergraduate degree in Biochemical Sciences at Harvard College, medical degree from The Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, then completed residency at the Harvard Combined Plastic Surgery Residency Program.
Dr. Chun works closely with the surgical and medical oncology colleagues as part of a multi-disciplinary team to provide high quality care for breast cancer patients. She is well-regarded by patients and peers for her excellent clinical outcomes and delivery of thoughtful and individualized patient care. Her research is focused on clinical outcomes for patients undergoing reconstructive breast surgeries and she has spearheaded a number of multicenter clinical trials in the field of breast reconstruction.
Dr. Miriam Chung is an associate professor at Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai. Her roles at Mount Sinai include: Director of Nephrology Fellowship Program, Associate Clinical Director of the Division of Nephrology, and Clinical Director of Glomerular Diseases Clinic.
President, American Medical Association 2023
Dr. Jesse M. Ehrenfeld is board certified in both anesthesiology and clinical informatics and has been an AMA Trustee since 2014, having served as Board Chair in 2019-20
Dr. Ehrenfeld is one of the most respected national voices on digital health integration and innovation, serving as a consultant to the World Health Organization’s former Digital Health Technical Advisory Group, and co-chair of the Association for the Advancement of Medical Instrumentation’s committee on AI. He previously served as co-chair of the Navy Surgeon General’s Taskforce on Personalized and Digital Medicine and as a special advisor to the 20th U.S. Surgeon General.
His research, which focuses on understanding how information technology can improve surgical safety and patient outcomes, has been funded by the National Institutes of Health, the Department of Defense, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, the Anesthesia Patient Safety Foundation, and the Foundation for Anesthesia Education and Research.
Dr. Ehrenfeld is also a combat veteran who deployed to Afghanistan during both Operation Enduring Freedom and Resolute Support Mission.
Dr. Patrick Ha is chief of the UCSF Division of Head and Neck Surgical Oncology. His expertise in patient care covers the full scope of head and neck surgery, with a focus on thyroid and parathyroid surgery as well as endoscopic approaches to throat cancer surgery.
Dr. Ha’s laboratory research is primarily focused on molecular changes that occur in adenoid cystic carcinoma of the salivary gland.
He received an undergraduate degree in biology from Harvard University, graduating magna cum laude. He obtained his medical degree from Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, graduating with membership in the Alpha Omega Alpha Honor Medical Society. He then completed his residency training and a postdoctoral fellowship at the Johns Hopkins Department of Otolaryngology, along with advanced fellowship training in head and neck oncologic surgery
Dr. Ha serves as the Editor In Chief of the journal Head and Neck, and ison the editorial board of several medical journals, including Oral Oncology. He is the Irwin Mark Jacobs and Joan Klein Jacobs Distinguished Professor in Head and Neck Cancer.
Co-Scientific Chair
Helen Han, MD is an Assistant Professor of Clinical Medicine at University of Southern California. She has served as Medical Director of Living Donor Liver Transplantation Program for the past 5 years. Her newest role is Program Director of the Transplant Hepatology Fellowship Program. Dr. Han comes from the East Coast, training in Internal Medicine, Gastroenterology, and Transplant Hepatology at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai Hospital. She graduated with a Bachelor in Arts degree from Columbia University and received her medical degree at University of Miami.
She is a long-time KAMA member who has recently been inspired to reengage to serve the Korean American community as the Co-chair of the Scientific Program for the national KAMA meeting.
Her areas of clinical and research interests are alcohol associated liver disease and living donor liver transplantation. She has numerous abstracts and peer reviewed articles on the topic of alcohol relapse prevention in patients with alcohol associated liver disease as well as living donor well-being and outcomes of living donor liver transplants.
CEO, Kakao Healthcare
Hwang Hee, CEO of Kakao Healthcare, is focusing on building a mobile-based digital healthcare ecosystem. He is planning to expand the business not only in the domestic market but also in the US, Japan, the Middle East, and Southeast Asia.
As a representative digital health care expert in Korea, he served as a professor at Seoul National University Bundang Hospital, Division of Pediatric Neurology, Department of Pediatrics, and senior vice president of EMR company, ezCaretech. In 2019, he was selected as one of the 50 Digital Healthcare Innovation Leaders by the Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society(HIMSS), and was inducted into the Healthcare IT Hall of Fame by the HIMSS Asia Pacific 2016.
Korea Liaison
Dr. Daehee Kang is professor of Preventive Medicine at Seoul National University College of Medicine (SNUCM). He recently became a chairman of SNUCM Future Development Committee which provides mid-to long term strategies for future development of SNUCM. He was dean of SNU College of Medicine between 2012 and 2018. He has been the chairman of Asian Cohort Consortium (ACC) since 2004. ACC is established to promote collaborative efforts among Asian researchers to understand the underlying mechanisms of Asian specific disease etiology. ACC consist of more than one million Asian healthy subjects from 12 Asian countries including Japan, China, Korea, etc.
Dr. Kang’s research interest includes the gene and environment interaction to the development of common cancers in Asian such as gastric cancer and breast cancer etc. He published more than 380 articles and his H-index is 68. He received numerous awards including Conelius Kruze Award to the best dissertation paper from Johns Hopkins University where he received his PhD in Environmental Health Sciences.
Before joining a faculty at Seoul National University in 1996, he was an Epidemic Intelligence Officer(EIS) at US Centers for Diseases Control and Prevention(CDC). He also was Senior Fellow at US National Cancer Institute(NCI) between 2004-2006. He was visiting scholar to Peking Medical Union, China in 2018 and University of Tokyo, Japan in 2019.
Dr. Kang is a tenured Associate Professor of Radiology and Population Health at NYU Langone Health, where she practices abdominal radiology and serves as Associate Chair of Population Health Imaging and Outcomes. As a principal investigator, she applies methods of comparative effectiveness research, including decision science and economic evaluation, as well as health care delivery science. She completed her medical degree at Weill Cornell Medical College and residency at NYU School of Medicine, where she also served as chief resident. After completing her clinical fellowship at Massachusetts General Hospital, Dr. Kang obtained a master’s degree in clinical investigation concentrated in comparative effectiveness research at NYU. She has also served as a teaching fellow at the Harvard School of Public Health and Erasmus Medical Center in Rotterdam, the Netherlands, in Advanced Medical Decision-Making. Dr. Kang serves on the editorial board of three premier imaging journals, including Radiology, and as a charter member for an imaging study section of the NIH and the Radiological Society of North America.
Edward S. Kim, MD, M.B.A., FACP, FASCO, is physician-in-chief and senior vice president, City of Hope Orange County, Construction Industries Alliance City of Hope Orange County Physician-in-Chief Chair, and vice physician-in-chief and professor, City of Hope National Medical Center.
Dr. Kim is among the country’s foremost experts in molecular prognostication – which advances cancer detection and personalized therapies – for lung, head, and neck cancers. He has served as a principal/co-principal investigator on numerous studies and protocols and authored/co-authored more than 200 published articles, book chapters, and reviews in top-tier journals such as The Lancet, The Lancet Oncology, Journal of Clinical Oncology, Cancer Discovery, Cancer, Nature Medicine, and Cancer Prevention Research.
Dr. Kim has been recognized as one of the top cancer experts in the nation and among cancer care’s leading advocates for diversity, equity, and inclusion. A respected clinician, researcher, and physician executive, he is a trailblazer who is eliminating practices that exclude minority populations from clinical trials and result in serious gaps in care and research.
Before joining City of Hope, Dr. Kim was the chair of Solid Tumor Oncology and Investigational Therapeutics, the Donald S. Kim Distinguished Chair for Cancer Research, and medical director of the Clinical Trials Office at the Levine Cancer Institute, Atrium Health in Charlotte, North Carolina, and a professor of medicine at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill.
Prior to the Levine Cancer Institute, he held many leadership positions including associate professor (tenured) in the Department of Thoracic/Head and Neck Medical Oncology at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center and the University of North Carolina Kenan-Flagler School of Business
I am Hye Sung, a physician-researcher-artist. I am a postdoctoral Research Fellow at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine.
Hye Sung will be a part of the 2024 Residency Match journey as an Internal Medicine applicant and a Medical Oncology aspirant.
Immediate Past President Of KAMA
Dr. Kim is currently Chair of the Department of Gastroenterology, Hepatology, and Nutrition at Cleveland Clinic and a Chair of the Carcinoid and Neuroendocrine Tumor Section of the American Gastroenterological Association.
Prior to Dr. Kim’s recent transition to Cleveland Clinic, Dr. Kim was Vice Chair for Faculty Affairs for the Department of Medicine at the Icahn School of Medicine, Professor of Medicine and Co-Director of the Center for Carcinoid and Neuroendocrine Tumors, and President of the Faculty Council at Mount Sinai. Dr. Kim has also served as the President of the New York Society for Gastrointestinal Endoscopy.
Dr. Kim earned her undergraduate degree from Harvard College and her medical degree from Stanford University School of Medicine. She completed her postgraduate training in internal medicine and gastroenterology at New York Presbyterian Hospital (Cornell). She has lectured nationally and internationally on carcinoid and neuroendocrine tumors and is known for her work in translational and epidemiologic approaches in assessing outcomes in these patients. Dr. Kim is also interested in early detection of gastrointestinal cancers and in addressing disparities in underserved populations.
Dr. Kim has received research funding from the American Cancer Society, the Neuroendocrine Tumor Research Foundation, the Mount Sinai CTSA, the Carcinoid Cancer Foundation, and the Neuroendocrine Tumor Research Foundation. Dr. Kim has published more than 80 publications in journals such as the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Gastroenterology, and NEJM Catalyst. Dr. Kim is strongly committed to the career development of medical trainees and junior faculty, especially those of women and underrepresented minorities. Dr. Kim has won numerous teaching awards and has mentored more than five dozen medical students, residents, gastroenterology fellows, and junior faculty.
Dr. Kim was born in Ontario, Canada but traveled to the U.S. for his education. He received his bachelor’s degree at Harvard University in Cambridge, MA. He received his MD degree from Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine in Baltimore, MD. He then completed his internship and residency in Internal Medicine at Duke University Medical Center in Durham, NC. Finally, he completed his Cardiology fellowship at Weill Cornell Medical College/NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital in New York City and joined the faculty full-time in 2007. He serves as Director of Consultative Cardiology.
Dr. Kim practices General Cardiology and cares for patients with hypertension, coronary artery disease and its complications, valvular heart conditions, cardiomyopathies, and those who have undergone heart surgery or interventional procedures. Dr. Kim was the Associate Program Director for the Cardiovascular Diseases Fellowship program of Weill Cornell Medicine from 2008 to 2022. He has been the Course Unit leader of the Weill Cornell medical students’ pathophysiology-based unit on cardiovascular disease since 2008 and Course Director of the Cardiology Salzburg Seminar program of the Open Medical Institute and American Austrian Foundation since 2018. He is also the co-founder of the Quality Improvement Academy at Weill Cornell/NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital.
Dr. Sarah Kim is a general surgery resident at the University of Illinois at Chicago. She is a Windy City native having spent her childhood back and forth from the city and the suburbs. She completed both her undergraduate education also at UIC in the GPPA Medicine program with a BA in Chemistry as well as MD from UIC. Outside of work, she functions as the residency program’s Instagrammer and uses the excuse of being an amateur Instagram foodie to try all the delicious adventures Chicago has to offer.
Emergency Medicine Physician, Entrepeneur
Dr. Kwon immigrated to the US when he was 8 years old, growing up in Maryland. He received an undergraduate degree in Biomedical Engineering at The Johns Hopkins University and subsequently went on to obtain a medical degree from Wake Forest University School of Medicine on a scholarship, eventually completing his Emergency Medicine Residency training at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, MN. Dr. Kwon also holds an MPH degree in Health Finance and Management from Johns Hopkins and is a Fellow of the American College of Emergency Medicine.
Dr. Kwon is one of five founders and currently serves as a board member and managing partner of Physicians Premier Emergency Room and Physicians Premier Management Services. The Freestanding Emergency Facilities group currently owns and operates 9 full-service Emergency Rooms and 3 Urgent Cares in the South Texas region and has roughly 400 employees and 120 Emergency Room physicians. Dr. Kwon is the past President of the Korean American Medical Association, Texas chapter, and serves on its Board. Dr. Kwon serves as a Board Member of Healing Hands International, a non-profit that operates a clinic in Cristo Rey, Nicaragua meeting the needs of medically underserved population in and around the community of Cristo Rey.
Dr. Kwon is passionate about impacting the next generation of Korean Americans. He actively serves as a director at Arche, an English Ministry of the Korean Central Presbyterian Church of Houston and is a member of the Council of Korean Americans, a national non-profit organization with a mission to advance the national voice and influence of the Korean American community.
Dr. Kwon resides in Richmond, Texas surrounded by beautiful ladies, his wife Ki and his 3 daughters Noel, Norah, and Brielle.
The 14th United States Asst. Secretary of Health and Human Services
Dr. Howard K. Koh is the Harvey V. Fineberg Professor of the Practice of Public Health Leadership at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health (Harvard Chan) as well as Faculty Co-Chair of the Harvard Advanced Leadership Initiative. At Harvard Chan, he is also the inaugural Chair of the Initiative on Health and Homelessness and formerly headed the Center for Public Health Preparedness. He served as the The 14th United States Asst. Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) (2009-2014) after being nominated by President Barack Obama and confirmed by the US Senate, and as Commissioner of Public Health for the Commonwealth of Massachusetts (1997-2003) after being appointed by Governor William Weld. He was also appointed by President Bill Clinton to the National Cancer Advisory Board (2000-2002).
A graduate of Yale College (where he was President of the Yale Glee Club) and the Yale University School of Medicine, he trained at Boston City Hospital and Massachusetts General Hospital, earned board certifications in four medical fields, served as Principal Investigator of research grants totaling $27M and published more than 300 articles in the medical and public health literature. He has received over 70 awards and honors for interdisciplinary accomplishments in medicine and public health including six honorary doctorate degrees, the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Legacy Award for National Service, the Sedgwick Memorial Medal from the American Public Health Association (its highest honor), the Champion Award from the Campaign for Tobacco Free Kids and the Distinguished Service Award from the American Cancer Society.
As part of recognition as a “Medical All Star” by the Boston Red Sox for promoting the early detection and prevention of melanoma, he delivered the ceremonial first pitch at Fenway Park (2003). In 2019, HHS established the annual Dr. Howard K. Koh Award for Excellence in Leadership sponsored by the Federal Asian Pacific American Council. He and his wife Dr Claudia Arrigg are the proud parents of three adult children and the proud grandparents of five grandchildren.
Chair, Department of Psychiatry University of Rochester School of Medicine
Hochang Benjamin (Ben) Lee, MD is the John Romano Professor and Chair of the Department of Psychiatry at the University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry and Chief of Psychiatry at Strong Memorial Hospital in Rochester.
Prior to his chairmanship at University of Rochester, he was the founding director and Chief of Psychological Medicine Section at Yale. Previously, he had also been Associate Professor of Psychiatry at Johns Hopkins, and Director of Research Development at the Johns Hopkins Bayview.
His primary research interests are: 1. Developing innovative models for delivery behavioral health service for medical and surgical patients. 2. Prevention of neuropsychiatric morbidity (e.g. delirium, depression, and dementia) after major surgery among the elders. Dr. Lee is also an expert in psychiatric aspects of restless legs syndrome, and Asian American mental health issues.
Dr. Lee is board certified in psychiatry with sub-specialty certification in psychosomatic medicine. Dr. Lee completed psychiatry residency and combined neuropsychiatry/psychiatric epidemiology fellowships at Johns Hopkins after earning his MD at Jefferson Medical College in Philadelphia in 1997.
Dr. Lee is the Editor-In-Chief for Journal of the Academy of Consultation Liaison psychiatry and the President-Elect of International College of Psychosomatic Medicine.
Private Practice, La Vein Center
Dr. Larisse Lee earned her Bachelor of Science degree in mechanical engineering from Stanford University, and her medical degree from the Stanford University School of Medicine, both in Palo Alto, California. She continued her training with a general surgery residency at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston, before going on to complete a prestigious Vascular Surgery Fellowship at New York Presbyterian Hospital, Weill Cornell Medical Center and Columbia Presbyterian Medical Center in New York, New York. Board certified in both Vascular Surgery and General Surgery, Dr. Lee has received numerous honors and awards, including a National Research Service Award bestowed by the National Institutes of Health. Dr. Lee has conducted several studies in vascular surgery to increase knowledge and understanding in the field. Dr. Lee is a frequent presenter at medical meetings and conferences around the country. In addition, she is also the author of a number of articles published in peer-reviewed journals.
Dr. Michael Lim is a Professor and Chair of Neurosurgery at Stanford University. Dr. Lim obtained his MD from the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. He then completed his residency in Neurosurgery at Stanford University Hospital and went on to become a Professor of Neurosurgery, Oncology and Radiation Oncology at Johns Hopkins before returning to Stanford as Chair. Dr. Lim’s surgical interest is in both benign and malignant brain tumors, with a particular interest in gliomas (including ependymoma), meningioma, pituitary tumors and skull base tumors. He has extensive experience in new and innovative neurosurgical techniques including image guided surgery, microsurgery, minimally invasive procedures and endoscopic surgery.
Dr. Lim’s primary research interest is developing immune-based therapies against brain tumors. His research laboratory is focused on understanding the mechanisms of immune evasion by primary brain tumors. Findings from his laboratory are directed towards translation to novel therapies against brain tumors. In addition to running a laboratory, he currently serves as the principal investigator of several large brain tumor immunotherapy clinical trials based on findings from his laboratory.
Dr. Michael Lee is a professor vice chair of orthopedic surgery at the University of Chicago Medical Center. He specializes in spine surgery treating a wide variety of spine pathologies including deformity, trauma, tumor and degenerative disease. He is academically active, having published more than 180 manuscripts, edited two textbooks, and chaired several spine and orthopedic educational courses. While faculty at the University of Washington in Seattle, he held the Surgical Dynamics Endowed Chair for Spine Research. Born and raised in Cincinnati, OH, he carries the simultaneous joy and shame of being a Cincinnati Bengals fan.
Dr. Robert Min, a pioneer in the field of vascular interventional radiology, is President and Chief Executive Officer of Weill Cornell Medicine’s Physician Organization, Professor and Chairman of Radiology at Weill Cornell Medicine, Radiologist‐in‐Chief at NewYork‐Presbyterian Hospital/Weill Cornell Medical Center, and President of Weill Cornell Imaging at NewYork‐Presbyterian.
In his role leading the Weill Cornell Medicine Physician Organization, Dr. Min oversees the business operations of clinical practice at Weill Cornell Medicine. The Weill Cornell Medicine Physician Organization is comprised of more than 1,500 full‐time faculty physicians who provide nearly 3 million patient encounters each year.
Dr. Min has served in multiple leadership positions in radiological and venous‐related societies including Editor‐in‐ Chief of the journal Clinical Imaging. His clinical interests have focused on increasing awareness, improving diagnoses, and modernizing therapies of venous conditions. Dr. Min developed endovenous laser treatment for venous insufficiency. This minimally invasive technique is now used around the world to treat a variety of conditions, including varicose veins.
Dr. Min received his Medical Degree from Weill Cornell Medicine and a Masters of Business Administration from Columbia University, completing an Internship in surgery and a Residency in diagnostic radiology at NewYork‐Presbyterian/Weill Cornell Medical Center, where he served as Chief Resident. After his Fellowship in cardiovascular interventional radiology at Stanford University Medical Center, Dr. Min was in 1999 appointed to the Weill Cornell Medicine faculty, becoming Chairman of the Department of Radiology in 2005.
President, American Delirium Society
Co-Director, Johns Hopkins Memory and Alzheimer’s Treatment Center
Esther Oh, Sarah Miller Coulson Human Aging Project Scholar, is an Associate Professor in the Division of Geriatric Medicine and Gerontology, Department of Medicine with appointments in the Departments of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences and Pathology at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. She also has appointments in the Johns Hopkins University School of Nursing and in the Johns Hopkins Cochlear Center for Hearing and Public Health. She is currently the co-director of the Johns Hopkins Memory and Alzheimer’s Treatment Center, an investigator in the Richman Family Precision Medicine Center of Excellence in Alzheimer’s disease, and co-director of the Alzheimer’s disease core of the Artificial Intelligence and Technology Collaboratory. She is also the President of the American Delirium Society.
Oh’s research, clinical work and educational activities are grounded in seeking targeted and personalized treatment, care and cure for patients with memory disorders with a focus on interdisciplinary and team science approaches.
Oh’s work includes the development of fluid and biometric biomarkers for early detection of AD and to predict postoperative delirium, delirium and cognitive changes after surgery; long-term cognitive changes associated with COVID-19; sensory changes associated with AD; and cognitive impairment in the context of multimorbidities and polypharmacy.
Dr. Park is a board-certified internal medicine physician, clinical informatician, and an accomplished entrepreneur. He is the founder, chairman, and head of product/engineering at AvoMD, a pioneering digital healthcare AI company.
In addition to his leadership at AvoMD, Dr. Park holds academic appointments as an Associate Harvard Medical Faculty (AHMF) at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and an Assistant Professor at Boston University School of Medicine. Before his current positions, he was an internal medicine/clinical informatics fellow at New York Presbyterian-Columbia University Medical Center (“CUMC”), and served on the executive board of the National Association of Clinical Informatics Fellows.
Dr. Park’s credentials extend to the realm of education and mentoring, having guided computer science classes in healthcare software at Georgia Tech. He also leads several clinical AI collaborations with top institutions like Columbia University, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Rutgers University, and the University of Pittsburgh.
Richard Park, MD is a health care investor, entrepreneur and board certified emergency medicine physician. In 2010, He founded and led as CEO, CityMD, an urgent care practice with over 130 locations and 650 physicians in the Greater New York area. In 2019, CityMD merged with Summit Medical Group and expanded to over 200 locations and 1500 physicians in 70 medical and surgical specialties. He is co-founder with his business partner In Seon Hwang, of Ascend Capital Partners, a middle market growth private equity fund investing in healthcare service providers.
Dr. Amanda Rhee, is an Associate Professor of Anesthesiology, Perioperative and Pain Medicine on faculty at Mount Sinai Hospital. She is also the Medical Director of Patient Safety for Mount Sinai Health System and the Director of Quality and Patient Safety for the Division of Cardiothoracic Anesthesiology at Mount Sinai Hospital. She received her Master of Science in Health Care Delivery Leadership at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, and has a LEAN six sigma greenbelt.
Dr. Rhee leads the development and implementation of complex system level patient and staff safety programs for Mount Sinai Hospital and Mount Sinai Health System including care standardization, universal protocol, TeamSTEPPS, preoperative patient preparation, blood management, and coronary artery bypass graft surgical site infection reduction that have produced outcome benefits for patients and staff. During the COVID epidemic in New York City she built clinical operations for off-site locations such as the Central Park Tent Hospital and the Mount Sinai Hospital Lobby Hospital. Dr. Rhee is also the Inaugural Director for the Center for Asian Equity and Professional Development in the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai.
Julie S. Rhee, MD is double board certified in Obstetrics and Gynecology as well as Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility (REI). She completed her fellowship in REI at Washington University in St. Louis. She completed her residency in Obstetrics and Gynecology at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Harvard Medical School. She helped start Vios Fertility Institute, a private practice fertility practice in 2015, which has now subsequently become Kindbody, a national fertility company that emphasizes access to care by providing direct employer benefits. She currently serves as Medical Director of the Arkansas location, Practice Director of the St Louis location and is the Regional Midwest Director. She is also involved in resident teaching. She has won multiple awards, authored numerous publications, and has presented at national meetings on topics related to women’s health and infertility. Her particular areas of interest include fertility preservation, egg freezing, IVF, and recurrent pregnancy loss
Dr. Ja Hyun Shin is the Division Chief of Minimally Invasive Gynecologic Surgery and Associate Professor at Weill Cornell/NewYork Presbyterian Hospital. She completed her residency in Obstetrics and Gynecology at Columbia University Medical Center followed by an AAGL Fellowship in Minimally Invasive Gynecologic Surgery. Dr. Shin is an expert in advanced laparoscopic and robotic procedures and has dedicated her practice to caring for her patients who suffer from endometriosis, fibroids, adenomyosis, and other pelvic pain and bleeding disorders. She is an advocate of multidisciplinary efforts to provide her patients with the most comprehensive and least invasive treatment options. Dr. Shin is the Co-Director of the Weill Cornell Medicine Fibroid and Adenomyosis Center. Dr Shin served on the Board of Advisors for the Society of Laparoscopic and Robotic Surgery and is the Chief Medical Advisor of Zencape Health. An advocate of the Arts, Dr. Shin sits on the Board of the Metropolitan Opera of New York City.
John H. Suh, MD, FASTRO, FACR is Chair of the Department of Radiation Oncology at the Taussig Cancer Institute, Professor of Radiation Oncology at the Cleveland Clinic Lerner College of Medicine at Case Western Reserve University, and staff at the Rose Ella Burkhardt Brain Tumor and Neuro-oncology Center. He obtained his undergraduate and medical degree from the University of Miami through a combined B.S./MD program in 1990 and completed his residency and fellowship in Radiation Oncology at the Cleveland Clinic in 1994 and 1995, respectively. His clinical, research and educational interests include brain, spine and ocular tumors, stereotactic radiosurgery, and stereotactic body radiation therapy. He has contributed numerous peer-reviewed manuscripts and book chapters, has been co-editor or editor of 3 textbooks and has been the editor of Applied Radiation Oncology since 2012. From 2010-2018, he was on the Advisory Committee for Medical Uses of Isotopes (ACMUI) for the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. He was the section head for the CNS/pediatrics section of the oral board for the American Board of Radiology from 2008-2019. Since 2019, he has been on the Board of Trustees for the American Board of Radiology.
Dr. Jon Wee is the Esophageal Surgery Section Chief, Director of Robotics in Thoracic Surgery, and co-Director of Minimally Invasive Thoracic Surgery at Brigham and Women’s Hospital. He is also an Associate Program Director for Thoracic Surgery and is an Assistant Professor of Surgery at Harvard Medical School.
Dr. Wee received his medical degree from the Duke University School of Medicine and completed his surgical training at Brigham and Women’s Hospital. He then went on to complete his cardiothoracic surgery training at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center. He is board certified in surgery and thoracic surgery.
Dr. Wee’s clinical interest is in minimally invasive approaches to thoracic diseases. These include minimally invasive and robotic esophagectomy, lobectomy, thymectomy and mediastinal resection for thoracic malignancies. In addition, he treats benign esophageal disease such as gastro-esophageal reflux disease, giant paraesophageal hernias, diverticulum, etc. He performs POEM procedures for achalasia as well as sympathectomy for hyperhidrosis and endoluminal therapies such as PDT, laser, and stents for palliation. His research interest is in the use of minimally invasive techniques to decrease pain, improve recovery, and improve ultimate outcomes.
John H. Won, MD was a Chairman of the Board KAMA from 2018 to 2021. Now He is a Board member. He has served in various leadership positions of KAMA for over 16 years, including as KAMA President in 2015 and 2017.
Dr. Won received undergraduate degree from Cornell University in 1987 and also completed Masters of Science at Columbia University. Dr. Won received a Doctor of Medicine from New York Medical College where he also completed his general surgery and urology residency.
Dr. Won has been practicing urology for over 21 years in the New York metropolitan area. He is a clinical instructor of urology at Weill Cornell Medicine and the medical director of JSMK Urology.
I am an M2 enrolled in the six-year direct medical program at the University of Missouri-Kansas City School of Medicine. I am half Korean and half Taiwanese and grew up in Dallas, Texas. I am currently the Conference Chair for the KAMSA 2023-2024 Executive Board and am passionate about promoting the Korean American community, both within and outside of the medical field. Although I am trying to keep an open mind, I am very interested in Interventional radiology and spent this past summer at Weill Cornell Medical Center shadowing and conducting research. In my free time, I enjoy going on walks, spending time with family and friends, and scrolling through videos of small, cute, fluffy dogs.
Dr. George Yoo is the Chief Medical Officer (CMO) at the Karmanos Cancer Institute (KCI) and a Professor in the departments of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery and Oncology at Wayne State University (WSU). Dr. Yoo completed his intern, residency and fellowship training in Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery at Johns Hopkins Hospital in 1996; He specialized in head and neck surgical oncology at WSU and KCI. He is an expert in the surgical management of head and neck (mouth and throat) cancers along with melanoma, thyroid, parotid and sinus tumors. He received “The Best Doctors in America”, “Top Doctors – HOUR Detroit Magazine” and “Who’s Who in America”, “Detroit Super Doctors”, “America’s Top Doctor”, “America’s Top Doctors for Cancer” awards.
He has published over 70 articles and 6 chapters on head and neck cancer. He is a member of Head and Neck Cancer Steering Committee-NCI, and serves as the Chief, University Cancer Specialists-Wayne State University Physician Group, Director of Clinical Affairs, Chair-Clinical Leadership Council, and member of KCC-Board of Directors. In the past he was the Vice President of Medical Affairs and has chaired of the Surgery Committee in the Southwest Oncology Group (SWOG).
Youngjin Yoo is the Elizabeth M. and William C. Treuhaft Professor in Entrepreneurship and Professor of Information Systems at the department of Design & Innovation at the Weatherhead School of Management, Case Western Reserve University. An Association of Information Systems Fellow, he is also WBS Distinguished Research Environment Professor at Warwick Business School, UK.
He is the founding faculty director of xLab at Case Western Reserve University. He has worked as Innovation Architect at the University Hospitals in Cleveland, overseeing the digital transformation efforts at one of the largest teaching hospital systems in the country. Before he returns to Case Western Reserve University, he was the Harry A. Cochran Professor of Management Information Systems and the Founding Director of Center for Design+Innovation at the Fox School of Business, Temple University where he was also the founder and Principal Investigator of Urban Apps & Maps Studios, an interdisciplinary initiative for digital urban entrepreneurship in Philadelphia. Previously, he was the Lewis-Progressive Chair of Management at Case Western Reserve University. He has taught digital innovation strategy around the globe at business schools such as London School of Economics, Warwick Business School, Indian School of Business, Ludwig-Maximilians University in Munich, Hitotsubashi University, Aalto University, and Korean Advanced Institute of Science and Technology. He also worked with NASA in the summer of 2001 and 2003 – 2004.
His 2010 Information Systems Research article is the most influential paper in digital innovation according to Google Scholar. He has received over $5 million in research grants from National Science Foundation, NASA, James S. and John L. Knight Foundation, the Department of Commerce, the National Research Foundation of Korea, and Samsung Electronics. His work was published at leading academic journals such as MIS Quarterly, Information Systems Research, Organization Science, the Communications of the ACM, and the Academy of Management Journal among others. He is the Senior Editor of MIS Quarterly, the Journal of AIS, and the Journal Information Technology, and is on the editorial board of Organization Science, the Scandinavian Journal of Information Systems, and Information and Organization. He was a former senior editor of the Journal of Strategic Information Systems and an associate editor of Information Systems Research and Management Science.
He has worked with leading companies including Samsung Electronics, Samsung Economic Research Institute, American Greetings, Progressive Insurance, Goodyear Tire, Sotera Health, Bendix, Moen, Intel, Ford Motor Company, Andersen Consulting, IDEO, Gehry and Partners, University Hospitals in Cleveland, American Management Systems, Lotus, NASA, Parker Hannifin, Poly One and the Department of Housing and Urban Development.
Dr. Charles H. Yoon is a general surgeon in Boston, Massachusetts and is affiliated with multiple hospitals in the area, including Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Dana-Farber Cancer Institute. He received his medical degree from New York University Grossman School of Medicine and has been in practice for more than 20 years
Dean, Penn State College of Medicine
Dorothy Foehr Huck and J. Lloyd Huck Chair in Rural Health Research
Karen Kim, MD, MS, was named dean at the Penn State College of Medicine in 2023. As the Dorothy Foehr Huck and J. Lloyd Huck Chair in Rural Health Research, Kim leads the College of Medicine’s education, research and clinical missions, culture of innovation, and will focus on enhancing team-based interdisciplinary collaboration across the College of Medicine, Penn State Health, the University at large and across commonwealth campuses. As Physician in Chief, Kim plays a critical role in shaping the academic health system.
In addition to dean, Kim is a nationally recognized leader in health disparities research, curricular innovation and public policy. Her research focuses on the rigorous development and evaluation of multi- level strategies to advance cancer health equity among marginalized and vulnerable populations. As founder and director of the Center for Asian Health Equity-a community-academic partnership, Kim is a national leader on public policies for the inclusion of Asian-Americans and underserved populations in research.
Prior to joining Penn State, Kim served as the Vice Provost for Research and Senior Research Officer at the University of Chicago, the Sara and Harold Lincoln Thompson Chair and Professor of Medicine, and Associate Director of the University of Chicago Comprehensive Cancer Center. During her tenure as Vice Provost for Research, Dr. Kim collaborated with divisions, schools, centers and institutes across the University and national laboratories to establish strategic research priorities, significantly increase interdisciplinary research and funding success and to enhance broader impact through inclusive innovation.
With extensive expertise in community-based participatory research (CBPR), dissemination and implementation science, intervention and minority health research, Kim is supported by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the National Cancer Institute Beau Biden Cancer Moonshot Initiative, and the Department of Health and Human Service’s Office of Minority Health and the National Institutes of Health. Kim leads the State of Illinois’ colorectal cancer control program across urban and rural regions and has focused on developing innovative technology-based solutions to address gaps in health care services among federally qualified community and rural health centers.
In addition to her research, Kim is deeply committed to civic engagement and has dedicated significant time to advancing health through service to numerous nonprofit organizations and national boards. Kim has been nationally recognized for her advocacy and policy work and received the International Women’s Leadership Award, the Chicago Foundation for Women Impact Award and the Cancer Prevention Laurel for Increasing Health Equity.
She is a member of the American College of Physicians, American Gastroenterological Association, and the American Medical Association, American Association for Cancer Research and the American Public Health Association.
She is the College’s first female dean and the only current Korean American woman to hold such a title nationally.
President
American Medical Association
Bruce A. Scott, MD, has been a leader in medicine throughout his career—and in June 2023 he was voted president of the American Medical Association. In this role he serves, along with the current president and immediate past president, as a lead spokesperson for the AMA. Concurrently he continues to serve on the AMA Board of Trustees.
In addition to his work with the AMA Board of Trustees, Dr. Scott is a member of the board of directors for Health2047, the AMA’s Silicon Valley-based innovation subsidiary that identifies and funds tech-enabled commercial health care enterprises. In this capacity he is helping shape the future of medicine from yet another fundamentally important perspective and platform. Prior to this most recent AMA election, Dr. Scott served four years as speaker and four years as vice speaker of the AMA House of Delegates, presiding at the meetings of delegates from every state and specialty as they crafted policies for the medical profession.
Dr. Scott has previously served on the AMA Foundation’s board of directors and as the president of the foundation. He has been president of his county and state medical associations and continues to serve on the boards of the Greater Louisville Medical Society and the Kentucky Medical Association (KMA). As a leader in these associations, he has fought for access to care for vulnerable populations, improvement in public health and reduction of administrative burdens in health care. He was awarded the KMA Distinguished Service Award in 2022 in recognition of his work on behalf of Kentucky’s physicians and patients. Dr. Scott is passionate about practicing medicine. He is consistently voted by his patients and peers as a “Best Physician” and “Top Surgeon.” He is the president of his six-physician independent private practice group, medical director of a multispecialty ambulatory surgery center and holds a clinical appointment at the University of Louisville School of Medicine. His commitment to change in medicine is grounded in the barriers to care he strives to overcome in his daily practice.
A graduate of Vanderbilt University, Dr. Scott completed his medical education and residency at University of Texas Medical Branch in Galveston, Texas, and a fellowship at the University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston. Subsequently he returned to his hometown of Louisville, Ky., to practice. He is board-certified in both otolaryngology and facial plastic surgery. An author of myriad articles for peer-reviewed publications, as well as chapters in otolaryngology textbooks, Dr. Scott also speaks to physician audiences around the country on topics ranging from leadership and advocacy to sinusitis and clinical documentation. Dr. Scott has been happily married for over 30 years and is the proud father of three young adults.
Director General, International Vaccine Institute
Jerome H. Kim, MD, is an international expert on the development and evaluation of vaccines and the Director General of the International Vaccine Institute (IVI).
IVI is a nonprofit international organization with a mission to discover, develop and deliver safe, effective, and affordable vaccines for Global Health. IVI’s oral cholera vaccine is used around the world to prevent and control this deadly diarrheal disease. IVI’s typhoid conjugate vaccine, tech-transferred to SK bioscience, is now approved by the Korean Ministry of Food and Drug Safety and prequalified by the WHO. The same TCV, tech-transferred to PT BioFarma, is approved by the Indonesian BPOM.
Prior to joining IVI, Dr. Kim was the Program Manager for the US Army’s Advanced Development Program for HIV vaccines and led the only HIV vaccine trial to show protection against infection (RV144), the identification of correlates from the trial, and analysis of viral sieve effects. He also served as the Principal Deputy of the US Military HIV Research Program doing earlier stage R&D on HIV vaccines and as the Chief, Laboratory of Molecular Virology and Pathogenesis at Walter Reed Army Institute of Research.
Dr. Kim is a Distinguished Visiting Professor, Seoul National University; an Adjunct Professor at the Uniformed Services University (USA) and the Graduate School of Public Health, Yonsei University; and an Honorary Professor, University of Rwanda. He is a graduate of the University of Hawaii with High Honors in History and Highest Honors in Biology.
Dr. Kim received his MD from the Yale University School of Medicine and completed Internal Medicine Residency and Infectious Diseases Fellowship at Duke University Medical Center. He has authored over 350 publications and has received numerous awards, including the Medal of Honor for Civic Merit, Republic of Korea.
U.S. Ambassador to the Republic of Korea
From 2013 to 2016, Ambassador Goldberg served as U.S. Ambassador to the Philippines. Prior to that assignment, he served as Assistant Secretary of State for the Bureau of Intelligence and Research (2010-2013); U.S. Ambassador to Bolivia (2006-2008); Chief of Mission in Pristina, Kosovo (2004-2006); and Chargé d’Affaires and Deputy Chief of Mission in Santiago, Chile (2001-2004). From 2009 to 2010, Ambassador Goldberg was coordinator for the implementation of UN sanctions on North Korea. His other overseas tours included Bogota, Colombia, where he served as the Plan Colombia coordinator, and Pretoria, South Africa.
Ambassador Goldberg was a senior member of the State Department team handling the transition from the Clinton to Bush administrations and served as acting Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Legislative Affairs (2000-2001) and Special Assistant and Executive Assistant to Deputy Secretary of State Strobe Talbott (1996-2000). As the Bosnia Desk Officer and Special Assistant to Ambassador Richard Holbrooke (1994-1996), Ambassador Goldberg was a member of the American negotiating team in the lead-up to the Dayton Peace Conference and Chief of Staff for the American delegation at Dayton.
Ambassador Goldberg holds the personal rank of Career Ambassador, the highest rank in the U.S. Foreign Service. He has received numerous awards, including Presidential Distinguished and Meritorious Service Awards; the Department’s Distinguished Honor Award and the Silver Seal Medallion for Meritorious Service in the U.S. Intelligence Community.
Ambassador Goldberg is a native of Boston, Massachusetts, and a graduate of Boston University. Before joining the Foreign Service, he served as a liaison officer between the government of the City of New York and the United Nations and Consular Community.