2025 SMPH Faculty Investiture Celebration honors faculty and donors

On Wednesday, June 18, at the University of Wisconsin–Madison Fluno Center, School of Medicine and Public Health faculty honorees, donors and leaders gathered for the fourth annual SMPH Faculty Investiture Celebration. The event celebrated and honored incredible faculty and recognized the outstanding individuals who make their pioneering work possible through generous faculty support gifts.

This is the fourth time a school-wide, centralized investiture ceremony has been held, with one of the goals being to provide a consistent experience for all generous donors who establish endowed faculty positions and the faculty who are benefitting from their generosity.

The faculty investiture ceremony is a gathering that signifies that a faculty member now holds an endowed professorship, chairship or fellowship, which are supported through philanthropy. An endowed faculty position is the highest honor the school can bestow on its faculty members. It represents an investment in talent and the future, pushing forward the school’s mission of advancing health and health equity through remarkable service to patients and communities, outstanding education and innovative research.

Endowed positions enable the school to recognize and advance faculty members’ passionate pursuit to understand, treat and eventually cure devastating diseases. Furthermore, it allows the school to invest in the next generation of healthcare leaders. The ceremony honored the accomplishments of inspiring and innovative endowed faculty and recognized its philanthropic partners who lead the charge to usher in a new era of medicine.

At the event, a chair, director or representative talked about each faculty member’s accomplishments and said a few words about the donor behind the endowed position. Dean Nita Ahuja, MD, MBA, who became the school’s 10th dean on May 15, 2025, provided welcome remarks.

“There are few synergies more powerful than what we see here in this room, few partnerships that do more to advance our research, teaching and service missions,” she said. “This culture, pride and partnership is part of what drew me to UW. Support for our faculty in particular drives our discovery forward. Our faculty possess a boundless commitment to science and medicine, making sacrifices and taking risks along the way in order to help bring our vision of healthy people and healthy communities into focus.”

Art Walaszek, MD, associate dean for faculty affairs and development, presented each faculty member with a medallion, which represents all they and the donors have accomplished, and will accomplish into the future. Each recipient also received a plaque that can hold the medallion and be displayed on a wall.

“Endowed chairs, professorships and fellowships are absolutely vital to the school and our faculty,” added Walaszek at the event. “I have seen firsthand how they support our national trailblazers who advance clinical care, education and research. I know how valuable these endowed positions can be. They help us bring the best and brightest to UW and help them thrive. This critical support would not be possible without the generosity of our donors.”

The event is part of Wisconsin Medicine, the philanthropic partnership between UW Health and UW School of Medicine and Public Health. Together, we are championing patient care, research and education.

See more photos from the investiture

Faculty honorees