Isaacson, Miller Assists the American Board of Pediatrics with CEO Search

December 16, 2021 – Isaacson, Miller has assisted the American Board of Pediatrics (ABP) in the selection of Dr. Judy Schaechter as its new president and chief executive officer. Partner Ariannah Mirick led the assignment along with managing associate Micah Pierce. Dr. Schaechter begins her new role on Jan. 1. She succeeds Dr. David G. Nichols, who will retire Dec. 31. after more than 25 years of association with the ABP.

Dr. Schaechter is a practicing general pediatrician, educator, child health leader and policy analyst. She most recently served as department chair of pediatrics at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine, for eight years. She is currently a health policy fellow with the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation in Washington, D.C., where she works with the U.S. Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions. In her role as chair at the Miller School of Medicine, Dr. Schaechter oversaw the largest department of pediatrics in South Florida. The department cares for patients in three hospitals, nine multi-specialty offices, nine additional school clinics, and two mobile clinics. It also includes two dedicated research and clinical buildings, a 150-student early education center, and is the region’s poison control and bio surveillance center.

In that role, Dr. Schaechter oversaw 150 faculty, 350 staff, 130 house staff. She also carried the role of chief of service for child health at Jackson Health System, one of the nation’s largest public hospitals. Prior to becoming the department chair at the Miller School, Dr. Schaechter served as associate chair and interim chair of the department.

A Children’s Health Advocate

As a professor of pediatrics and public health sciences, Dr. Schaechter focuses on maternal-child public health, preventive health, development and mental health, ethics, child health leadership, policy, and advocacy. As an educator and faculty leader, she has participated in her school’s efforts to improve undergraduate and graduate medical education, lead curriculum change, advance diversity and inclusion, and improve the climate for quality and safety.

A staunch advocate for children’s health, Dr. Schaechter has significant board experience with organizations such as the American Heart Association of South Florida, the National Injury Free Coalition for Kids, Florida Healthy Kids, The Children’s Trust, the Early Learning Coalition of Miami-Dade and Monroe, the Ronald McDonald House Charities of South Florida and the Miami Children’s Museum. Her roots are geared toward policy and advocacy issues around equity and disparities and how they interface with education.

She earned her bachelor’s degree in religious studies and ethics from Brown University before completing her MD with honors at Stanford School of Medicine. Dr. Schaechter finished her pediatric internship and residency at Stanford University School of Medicine/Lucille Salter Packard Children’s Hospital in Palo Alto, CA. She later received her MBA from the University of Miami School of Business, where she was named valedictorian.

Founded in 1933, the American Board of Pediatrics (ABP) is one of the 24 certifying boards of the American Board of Medical Specialties. The ABP is an independent, non-profit organization whose certificate is recognized throughout the world as a credential signifying a high level of physician competence. The board of directors of the ABP consists of distinguished pediatricians — in education, research, and clinical practice — and nonphysicians who have a professional interest in the health and welfare of children and adolescents. The ABP strives to improve training, establishes the requirements for certification, and sets the standards for its examinations.

Mission-Driven Clients

A nationally recognized search firm focused on recruiting transformational leaders for mission-driven organizations, Isaacson, Miller has conducted thousands of placements over more than three decades. More than half of the firm’s work has been in academia, involving university presidents, college chancellors and deans. The firm has filled top leadership posts at Wellesley College, Washington State University, Miami University, Howard University, Bowdoin College, Dartmouth, NYU, Virginia State University, and the University of North Carolina, among others. Mr. Isaacson founded Isaacson, Miller in 1982.

Ms. Mirick has been with Isaacson, Miller for a decade. She co-leads the firm’s healthcare practice and serves as the chair of the promotions committee. Ms. Mirick has partnered with a variety of academic medical centers to conduct leadership searches ranging from deans and chancellors to chair and chief positions. Her work spans the clinical, research, and administrative roles in academic medicine. She has led school of medicine dean searches for the University of Pittsburgh, Oregon Health and Science University, Washington University in St. Louis, and Yale University, among others.

Focused on higher education, Mr. Pierce has contributed to several high-profile searches since joining Isaacson, Miller in 2015. He helped place the system president for the University of Missouri along with the chancellor for its flagship campus. Committed to serving the civic sector, Mr. Pierce takes pride in working with non-profit, mission-driven organizations on a daily basis.

Related: Isaacson, Miller Selected to Find New Provost for Dartmouth College

Contributed by Scott A. Scanlon, Editor-in-Chief; Dale M. Zupsansky, Managing Editor; and Stephen Sawicki, Managing Editor – Hunt Scanlon Media