About Us
The Boston University Medical Campus Office of Faculty Development seeks to foster a respectful, collaborative, and inclusive environment that supports the faculty to reach their full potential. The office contributes to cultivating excellence in the educational, research, clinical, and service missions of BUMC. The Office’s goal is to recruit, retain, promote, and nurture a vibrant and diverse faculty.
Leadership
Emelia J. Benjamin, MD, ScM, FACC, FAHA, received her undergraduate degree at Harvard, her MD at Case Western Reserve University, and her Master’s in Epidemiology at Harvard School of Public Health. She is a Boston University Professor of Medicine at the Chobanian and Avedisian School of Medicine, the Robert Dawson Evans Distinguished Professor of Medicine, and Professor of Epidemiology at the School of Public Health. She is an international leader in the epidemiology of atrial fibrillation (AF). She has been a continuously funded NIH PI or MPI since 1998 on grants related to AF, vascular function, inflammation, mobile health, and chronic pain. She is a Framingham Heart Study investigator and a Boston Medical Center (New England’s largest urban safety net hospital) cardiologist. She is a Clarivate Highly Cited Researcher with an H-Index >200, and she has published >800 peer-reviewed publications.
She has a fundamental commitment to undergraduate, post-graduate, and faculty development and mentoring of individuals who are from underrepresented racial/ethnic groups, women, and early-, mid-, and established investigators in epidemiology and academic health sciences. She has led diverse AHA research fellowships since 2013 and is a member of the Supporting Undergraduate Research Experiences Oversight Advisory Committee for diverse undergraduates. She is the inaugural Associate Provost for Faculty Development at Boston University Medical Campus (BUMC). She co-designed and co-led the BUMC Early-Career, Mid-Career, Underrepresented Racial/Ethnic Group, Women’s, and Clinical Leaders longitudinal faculty development programs. She recently completed the Columbia Coaching Advanced Coaching Certification Program, and coaches faculty at BUMC.
Dr. Benjamin has won national awards for education (Laennec Clinician/ Educator Lecturer, AHA Council on Clinical Cardiology), research (inducted into the Association of American Physicians and the 2022 AHA Distinguished Scientist Award, past President of the Association of University Cardiologists), mentoring (American Heart Association 2025 Eugene Braunwald Academic Mentorship Award, AHA Women in Cardiology, and AHA Functional Genomics and Translational Biology council), and diversity – the 2020 Alliance in Academic Internal Medicine Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Award.
Alyssa DiNicola, MPH received her BA in Sociology from Keene State College, and later served as an AmeriCorps*Vista for KSC, where she researched, designed and implemented assessments for service learning programs. In addition, she managed the community service office by supervising students and coordinating international service trips to both Guatemala and Jamaica. Alyssa received her MPH from Boston University.
Alyssa has been working at the Boston University Medical Campus since 2016. She began in the Internal Medicine Residency Office, working as a Residency Program Coordinator, where she managed highly complex resident rotation schedules, evaluations, annual reviews and various events for 150 trainees. She also managed the Annual Health Equity Symposium, which brought together students, trainees, healthcare professionals and community members from all disciplines to focus on issues of health equity and promote collaboration on innovative strategies to combat these inequalities. Since working at BUMC, she has been a member of the local Massachusetts Society of Medical Administrators, where she served as a general board member and communication committee liaison.
Alyssa currently serves as the Director of Faculty Development for Boston University Medical Campus, and Director for Faculty Development and Diversity for the Department of Medicine. She is currently pursuing a Master of Public Health with a concentration in Health Equity at BU School of Public Health.
Zoe Sanchez, MS received her BA in Psychology from Boston University and her Master of Science in Nutrition and Metabolism from Boston University Chobanian & Avedisian School of Medicine.
During her time at BU, Zoe has focused her work in clinical research with a strong focus on health equity. She manages and supports research studies centered on Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes in diverse patient populations, particularly within safety-net hospital settings. Her work involves close collaboration with clinicians, direct patient engagement, and coordinating with faculty across Boston University. With experience in study design, data collection, program management, and interdisciplinary communication, she is committed to advancing equitable care.
Zoe currently serves as the Research Coordinator for Faculty Development for Boston University Medical Campus.
Sophia Barrett, MBA received their BA in biological anthropology from Skidmore College and their MBA in organizational leadership and healthcare management from Northeastern University.
Sophia draws from a breadth of experience for this role, from healthcare operations to higher education administration experience. They were part of the founding team of a startup healthcare clinic, designed a three year strategic plan for a radiation therapy shielding company, and most recently served as an office and project manager at the Questrom School of Business at Boston University within their undergraduate academic advising office. Sophia’s expertise includes operational efficiency, strategic measurement, and project management. Outside of work, you will find Sophia writing their second book, playing heavy metal on the drums and singing opera (although not at the same time), and walking their six-year-old husky, Luna.
Sophia currently serves as the Program Coordinator for Faculty Development for the Boston University Medical Campus.
Program Facilitators
Demian Szyld (pronounced “shield”), is an Attending Physician at Boston Medical Center where he cares for acutely ill and injured and enjoys being on high performance teams and teaching at the bedside. He is the Director of Innovation in Education. From 2016-2021 he was the Senior Director of the Institute for Medical Simulation – the Faculty Development Program at the Center for Medical Simulation. He practiced Emergency Medicine at the Brigham and Women’s Hospital (BWH) and was a Lecturer at Harvard Medical School.
Christopher Conley, MD, is a practicing Anesthesiologist at Boston Medical Center, with board certifications in Anesthesiology and Pediatric Anesthesiology. He serves as Director of Pediatric Anesthesia at BMC, where he oversees inpatient and outpatient pediatric anesthesia in the operating rooms, diagnostic imaging, interventional radiology and endoscopy.
Dr. Wachman is an attending neonatologist at Boston Medical Center (BMC) and an Associate Professor of Pediatrics. She is the Director of Pediatric Academic Research at BMC. Her areas of interest include substance use disorders in pregnancy and neonatal opioid withdrawal syndrome.
Sarah Wingerter is an Assistant Professor of Pediatrics at Chobanian and Avedisian School of Medicine, where she has served as Director of Narrative Medicine for the Department of Pediatrics and has designed and led numerous narrative-medicine and narrative-writing initiatives—including reflective writing workshops for faculty and trainees–on the BU medical campus and at other local institutions. She currently is Director of the Boston University Medical Campus Narrative Writing Program for faculty and is Course Director for the Illness Narratives elective for fourth-year medical students.
Jennifer Beard, PhD, MA, MPH, is a Clinical Associate Professor in the Department of Global Health at Boston University School of Public Health, the Associate Editor of Public Health Post, and an Assistant Director for Narrative in the Center for Antiracist Research. She developed and leads the BUSPH Public Health Writing Program and also directs the MPH Global Health Certificate. She created and teaches courses in global mental health, global health storytelling, and public health writing.For more information about our programs, please contact us at bumcfdd@bu.edu.