After a nationwide search, Robyn M. Perrin, PhD, has been hired as the inaugural Director of Strategic Communications at the School of Medicine and Public Health.
Robyn enters this role after five years as Public Relations and Communications Manager for the Department of Medicine in SMPH. In this role serving one of the largest departments in the UW System, Robyn has developed and implemented its integrated communications strategy. During her tenure, Robyn has been a strong school and campus partner and has shown an active commitment to improving communications throughout SMPH.
In 2017, she initiated a Community of Practice for communications professionals in SMPH, with the goal of facilitating collaboration among academic medicine communicators at UW and coordination with marketing and communication colleagues at UW Health. She has been deeply engaged with the Building Community initiative, and serves as a member of the Communications Working Group (which she will lead in this new role). Robyn also has an impressive background in technical writing and marketing at multinational corporations as well as scientific research.
She earned her PhD in plant biology and pathology from Michigan State University and performed NIH-funded postdoctoral research in plant cell biology and fungal microbiology here at UW–Madison.
As Director of Strategic Communications, Robyn will be responsible for the direction and leadership of strategic communications planning and implementation at SMPH. She will champion the missions of the School of Medicine and Public Health, promote a culture of transparency, and ensure that the vision of the school is articulated through multiple platforms. Robyn will report to the Dean’s Chief of Staff, Allison Golden, and work closely with Dean Golden, members of the Dean’s Leadership Team, members of the UW Health Marketing and Communications team and University Communications. She will directly supervise the Media Solutions team.
Robyn will have a soft start on April 22 and will begin pre-work for her new role as she wraps up in the Department of Medicine this spring.