I can’t believe we have come to my last blog of 2024. To say it has been eventful would be quite the understatement. The year felt like a raging hurricane, with destructive gusts such as an incredibly contentious election, the continued deterioration of public discourse, the rise of and troubling normalization of hate speech and a Middle East on fire, with collateral brush fires on so many college campuses. We were rocked by the sudden illness of our beloved university’s president and his subsequent resignation. We bade farewell to Ed Healton and welcomed Norm Beauchamp as our new EVP.
We have been securely in the eye of the hurricane and continue to make progress. We benefit from unprecedented institutional commitments to our success. None of this happens without the support of GUMC, MedStar Health or Hackensack Meridian Health. None of this happens without our superb cadre of administrators, who constantly find ways to convert lemons into lemonade. None of this happens without inspired fundraising, which will only increase in the coming years.
Our consortium partnership has strengthened in many ways, and we have laid a foundation for future high-impact projects. Our clinical enterprise is vibrant, and important investments have positioned our work in cell therapy for future success. Our clinical research portfolio and activities are strengthening, and our clinical research operations have dramatically improved. Our science is strong, our scientists are making new discoveries, and we are working together as never before. We have engaged the communities we serve in new and important ways. Our commitment to the future through our trainees and mentorship of early career faculty has never been more impactful.
I am fully aware that the external environment is likely to be very challenging in the coming few years, especially as it relates to the conduct of lifesaving research and research-inspired care. We have made the world a better place this year. Only by working together, working smartly, and celebrating the ways we can collaborate for higher impact can we succeed to the fullest extent of our capabilities.
We are on the move, and I could not be more excited about our future. As always, it’s about the people. All of us. Each of us. Everybody we serve. I am so incredibly grateful and continually humbled to have the opportunity to lead this wonderful cancer center. Please accept my thanks for how you have made us strong, and for how you will contribute to our future greatness.
Have a Merry Christmas, a Happy Chanukah, and of course a happy and healthy New Year. I hope you have a chance to spend time with your loved ones this holiday season. My blog will return on January 6.
Let’s make the world an ever better place next year.
With my profound appreciation,
Lou
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