Leadership

William S. Ayer is the retired chairman and chief executive officer of Alaska Air Group, the parent company of Alaska Airlines and its sister carrier, Horizon Air. Ayer, 63, served as chief executive officer of Alaska Air Group and its subsidiaries through 2012 and as chairman through 2013.

A veteran of more than three decades in aviation, Ayer began his career with Piper Aircraft Company and was the founder of Air Olympia, a small commuter airline in Washington State. He joined Horizon Air in 1982 where he held a variety of marketing and operations positions. He joined Alaska Airlines in 1995 as vice president of marketing and planning and subsequently held the posts of senior vice president, chief operating officer, and president. In 2002 he became the carrier's chief executive officer and in 2003 he was appointed chairman.

Ayer serves on the University of Washington Board of Regents. He also serves on the Honeywell Board of Directors, the Board of Trustees at the Museum of Flight and the Board of the National Air and Space Museum. Ayer was a member of the FAA's Management Advisory Council and is past chairman of FAA's NextGen Advisory Committee. He serves on the National Business Aviation Association Board and is chair of the AOPA Foundation Board of Advisors. He also serves on the Boards of two early stage companies, AirMap and VICIS. A graduate of Stanford University with a bachelor's degree in economics, he earned a master's degree in business administration from the University of Washington.

Brad Brown was the Senior Vice President of Digital Retail for Recreational Equipment Incorporated (REI) from 1998 - 2016. Since 1998 he has held positions as VP of Information Services and Corporate Purchasing and VP eCommerce & Direct Sales at REI. Brown was responsible for REI.com, REI-outlet.com, Mobile offerings (m.rei.com, shopping applications for both iPhone and Android platforms, and the REI Snow Report) and a Direct Sales team in Sumner, WA. Brown serves on the Board of Directors for Bikes Belong Coalition and Shop.org, the digital division of the National Retail Federation. In his current role, Brown serves as an Independent Consultant/Advisor for Baxter Wells, LLC. Brown holds a BA in Accounting from Central Washington University and an MBA from Seattle University.

Ana Mari Cauce was named president by the University of Washington Board of Regents on October 13, 2015. Cauce joined the University of Washington faculty in 1986 and is a full professor of psychology and American ethnic studies, with secondary appointments in gender, women and sexuality studies in the College of Arts & Sciences.

She has held numerous administrative positions at the UW, including director of the UW Honors Program, chair of American Ethnic Studies, chair of Psychology, executive vice provost, and dean of arts and sciences and most recently provost and executive vice president. She was a recipient of the University of Washington’s Distinguished Teaching Award.

Cauce earned degrees in English and psychology from the University of Miami, and a PhD in psychology, with a concentration in child clinical and community psychology, from Yale University.

Tim Dellit, MD, was named CEO of UW Medicine, executive vice president for medical affairs and Paul G. Ramsey Endowed Dean of the UW School of Medicine on November 28, 2023. He held these same roles on an interim basis since July 1, 2022. He served previously as chief medical officer for UW Medicine, executive vice dean for clinical affairs for the School of Medicine, vice president for medical affairs and president of UW Physicians (UWP), a faculty practice plan with more than 2,800 members.

In his leadership roles, Dr. Dellit is a strong proponent of practice transformation as UW Medicine strives towards the quadruple aim of improving the healthcare experience and quality of care for our patients, improving the health of the population we serve, reducing healthcare costs, and improving the practice environment for our clinicians. He is also deeply committed to addressing healthcare inequities and improving care in underserved communities.

Since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, Dr. Dellit’s expertise as an infectious diseases specialist has helped UW Medicine lead the nation in developing policies and protocols to treat patients safely and effectively. He also recognizes the toll of the pandemic on our 39,000-plus faculty, staff, trainees and students and the need to focus on their well-being.

Dr. Dellit earned his MD from Cornell University Medical College. He is board-certified in both Infectious Diseases and Internal Medicine. Dr. Dellit’s clinical and research interests include general infectious diseases, orthopedic trauma-related infections, prevention of healthcare-associated infections and appropriate use of antibiotics.

Steffanie Fain is a member of the UW Medicine Advisory Board and Vice Chair of the Harborview Medical Center Board of Trustees. She serves as Chair of the Finance Committee and Vice Chair of the Governance Committee for the Harborview Medical Center Board of Trustees. Ms. Fain is an attorney at Carroll, Biddle, & Bilanko, PLLC, and practices commercial litigation. She also represents and advises companies and entrepreneurs on corporate and transactional matters.

Toni Hoover, director, strategy planning and management of Global Health for the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, leads a team that is responsible for supporting the programs and functions with business strategy and operations, portfolio and project management, and engagement with product development partners. Her team is working to create more opportunities to consistently deliver high impact interventions in global health by integrating the network of diverse partners involved in product development by leveraging their respective strengths. She also oversees the foundation’s new Fellows program. Before joining the foundation in 2012, Toni was Senior Vice President and Site Director at Pfizer Worldwide Research and Development, overseeing the operations of the company’s largest R&D laboratories located in Groton, Connecticut. She is a 25-year veteran of pharmaceutical R & D product development and management where she held positions in clinical research and operations, project and portfolio management, and laboratory and facilities management. While at Pfizer she led the global development of Lyrica® from exploratory development through early commercialization. In 2013 Toni was named a “Woman of Influence” by the Puget Sound Business Journal. In 2007 Toni was named one of the “Top 50 Women to Watch” by The Wall Street Journal and in 2004 she received the YMCA’s Black Achiever in Industry Award. Throughout her career she’s been a strong advocate for diversity and inclusion and has mentored many associated with the pharmaceutical R & D enterprise. Toni is originally from New Orleans, Louisiana. She received her Bachelor of Arts, Masters and Doctorate in Psychology and Social Relations from Harvard University. She serves on several not-for-profit boards, including the New York Academy of Sciences, Xavier University of Louisiana, the Joyce Theater, and the Pacific Northwest Ballet.

Leigh Morgan is chief strategy and operating officer for Nia Tero, a global social enterprise where she is a key architect of the firm’s growth & impact. Morgan previously served as chief operating officer of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, where she oversaw a broad portfolio including HR, IT, information security, facilities and culture transformation. Her previous leadership roles include serving as associate chancellor at the University of California, San Francisco, vice president and global head of human resources (product development) at Genentech, and serving in North Carolina Governor Jim Hunt’s administration.  Her board roles include the Fred Hutch, biotech firm Curemark, Springboard Enterprises and Duke University’s Center for Advancement of Social Entrepreneurship. She is also a member of the Council on Foreign Relations.

She received a master’s of science degree in organization development at The American University, a bachelor’s degree in religion from Duke University and was awarded an honorary doctorate from the Asian University for Women (Bandladesh). 

Steven Safyer is the former President and Chief Executive Officer of the Montefiore Medicine Health System and its partner, the Albert Einstein College of Medicine. Dr. Safyer served in this position for twelve years and retired in November 2019. Both institutions are among the best health care systems in New York State and the nation. The system includes 12 hospitals in 4 counties of New York State and is a leader in medical education and research. An outstanding provider of primary care, its Centers of Excellence lead in providing complex care and innovation. The population served is among the most socioeconomically challenged in the country.

Prior to appointment as President and Chief Medical Officer, Dr. Safyer held senior leadership roles including Senior Vice President and Chief Medical Officer. He was granted his medical degree from the Albert Einstein College of Medicine and completed his internship and residency in Social Medicine at Montefiore. Dr. Safyer is Professor Emeritus, Department of Medicine and Department of Epidemiology and Population Health, Montefiore-Einstein.

Kathleen A. Sellick joined Rady Children’s Hospital- San Diego on June 30, 2006. Rady Children’s has become one of the leading pediatric hospitals in America and has been ranked among America’s best hospitals in all 10 specialties for 4 years by US News & World Report. In September of 2009, Rady Children’s established a Medical Practice Foundation with Children’s Specialists of San Diego and UC San Diego to provide a structure for recruiting and retaining top pediatric subspecialty physicians. Rady Children’s also now serves more pediatric inpatients than any other children’s hospital in California and opened its expanded 280,000 square foot acute care pavilion in October of 2010. Sellick retired from her position in March of 2014.

Prior to her appointment at Rady Children’s, Sellick served as Executive Director of the University of Washington Medical Center (UWMC) beginning April 1, 2001. Sellick joined UWMC in January 1999 as Associate Executive Director and Chief Operating Officer. She oversaw the successful transition of the Seattle Cancer Care Alliance (UW Medicine, Fred Hutch Cancer Research Center and Seattle Children’s) bone marrow and stem cell adult patient units to UW Medical Center. Under her leadership the medical center attained its highest operating margin in its history in 2003, and was ranked ninth in the U.S. News & World Report honor roll of America’s Best Hospitals.

Before going to Seattle, Sellick served as Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer of St. Joseph Hospital in Orange, California for four years. Earlier, she was Vice President of Administration and Director of Outreach Development for Hoag Hospital in Newport Beach, California where she served for eight years.

Sellick was active in a number of volunteer organizations, boards and industry groups. She most recently served on the Board of Directors of the California Children’s Hospital Association, Hospital Association of San Diego and Imperial Counties and the San Diego Center for Children.

A Phoenix native, Sellick is a graduate of Arizona State University and received her MBA from the University of Chicago (Booth) Graduate School of Business.

 Kathy Surace-Smith is currently a senior vice president of NanoString Technologies in Seattle, where she manages the company’s legal, human resources and regulatory functions. This NASDAQ-listed company develops, manufactures, and sells life-sciences research tools and molecular diagnostics. Kathy has over 30 years of experience working in high- growth private and public companies.

Kathy served on the board of trustees of the Fred Hutch Cancer Research Center for seven years, including two years as Board Chair, and following the merger of Fred Hutch with Seattle Cancer Care Alliance to create the Fred Hutch Cancer Center, will serve as the first Chair of the Board of Directors of the new entity. She is also a member of the board of trustees of Columbia University and chair of the board’s student affairs committee and recently concluded twelve years of service on the board of trustees of United Way of King County, including serving a term as Board Chair. She is also active in the Seattle Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce as a member of its policy leadership group.

Kathy was honored by the Puget Sound Business Journal as a 2018 Woman of Influence. She received her bachelor’s degree from Princeton University and her law degree from Columbia Law School

Mary Wakefield is the Visiting Distinguished Professor in the Practice of Health Care at Georgetown University and also a Visiting Professor and Distinguished Fellow at the University of Texas at Austin. Prior to these appointments, in March 2015, Dr. Wakefield was named by President Barack Obama to serve as the Acting Deputy Secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). She held this position through January 20, 2017. 

Prior to becoming Acting Deputy Secretary, Dr. Wakefield was appointed by President Obama as the Administrator of the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA). Dr. Wakefield's public service career also includes more than eight years working in the United States Senate where she served as a legislative assistant and later as chief of staff to two North Dakota senators:  Kent Conrad and Quentin Burdick.

Dr. Wakefield has extensive academic experience, including serving as associate dean for rural health at the School of Medicine and Health Sciences University of North Dakota, director of the Center for Health Policy, Research and Ethics at George Mason University in Fairfax, Va., and as a faculty member and area chair in the College of Nursing, University of North Dakota. Additionally, she worked on site as a consultant to the World Health Organization 's Global Programme on AIDS in Geneva, Switzerland.

Dr. Wakefield is a member of the National Academy of Medicine and a fellow in the American Academy of Nursing. She has served on a number of public and not for profit boards and committees bringing expertise in nursing, health care quality and access to care and health workforce.

She currently serves as a member of the Macy Foundation and the MITRE Health Advisory Committee.  Her prior service includes membership on the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission, Chair of the National Advisory Council for the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, member of President Clinton's Advisory Commission on Consumer Protection and Quality in the Health Care Industry, member of the National Advisory Committee to HRSA's Office of Rural Health Policy and member of the Commonwealth Fund's Commission to Create a High Performing Health System.

Dr. Wakefield has a Bachelor of Science degree in nursing from the University of Mary in Bismarck, ND and master's and doctoral degrees in nursing from the University of Texas at Austin.  She also completed the Harvard University School of Government's Program for Senior Managers in Government.

• Jeff Richey – Executive Director
• Richard Utarnachitt, MD​ – Medical Director 
• Brenda Nelson – Chief Flight Nurse 
• Cindy McFeely – Director of Finance

• Sommer Kleweno Walley – Chief Executive Officer, Harborview Medical Center
• J. Richard Goss, MD – Medical Director
• Jay Sandel – interim Chief Nursing Officer
• Katherine Hollman – Associate Administrator, Ambulatory and Allied Care Services
• Kera Dennis – Assistant Administrator, Finance

Board of trustees:

• Bernadene "Bernie" Dochnahl, Past President
• Lisa Jensen, Past President
• Steffanie M. Fain, President
• Sheryl Whitney, Vice President
• David Baker, Second Vice President 
• Phil Dyer
• Lisa Jacobs, Trustee
• Jonathan Kil, MD
• Clayton Lewis
• Sharon Maeda
• Meredith Mathews, MD
• David McDonald
• Lee Ann Prielipp

View trustee bios and meeting details

• Ali Iqbal, Finance Lead, UWMC
• Cindy Hecker, RN – Chief Executive Officer, UWMC Northwest & Montlake
• Kellie Garth Green, MSN, BSN, RN, CCRN – Chief Nursing Officer and Associate Administrator, UWMC
• Dawn Vincic, Associate Administrator, Essential Services, Radiology & Radiation Oncology
• Keri Nasenbeny – Associate Chief Nursing Officer, UWMC – Northwest
• Santiago Neme, MD – Medical Director, UW Medical Center
• JoAnne McDaniels – Associate Administrator, Ambulatory Care
• Jeff Richey – Associate Administrator Essential Services, UWMC - Montlake
• John Lang, MD – Associate Administrator Surgical Services, UWMC – Montlake
• Pam Renna – Associate Administrator, Facilities and Campus Development, UWMC – Montlake & Northwest
• Adam Parcher – Associate Administrator, Quality/Safety/Safety Value Base Care

• Pranika Laing – Interim Associate Vice President for UW Medicine Primary Care and Population Health 
• Vicky Fang, MD – Medical Director
• Chesna Briceno – Interim Associate Administrator
• Chantal Cayo – Chief Nursing Officer & Director Nursing/Care Coordination
• Lindsey Pervinich – Administrator, Finance and Strategic Planning
• Sara Mohamed – Administrator, Infrastructure and Communications

• Hunter B. Wessells, MD - President
• Erica Floyd – Interim Executive Director
• Laura Butcher – Director, Physician Services
• Erica Floyd – Interim Executive Director and CFO
• Ruth Perkins – Compliance Officer 
• Susan Simon – Director, Billing and Insurance
• Jeremy Tyndall – Director, Reference Lab Services
• Sarah Ramsey – Director, Coding & Charge Capture
• Marv Whitson – Director, Technology Integration & Operations Support (TIOS)              
• Mike Tribble – General Counsel 
• Toti Walia – Associate General Counsel

• Timothy H. Dellit, MD – Chief Executive Officer, UW Medicine; Executive Vice President for Medical Affairs and Paul G. Ramsey Endowed Dean of the School of Medicine, University of Washington

Vice Deans:

• Suzanne M. Allen, MD, MPH – Vice Dean for Academic, Rural and Regional Affairs
• Byron Joyner, MD – Vice Dean for Graduate Medical Education
• Trish Kritek, MD, EdM – Vice Dean for Faculty Affairs
• Julie Reid – Vice Dean for Administration and Finance
• Shelly Sakiyama-Elbert, PhD – Vice Dean for Research and Graduate Education
• Bessie Young, MD, MPH – Vice Dean for Equity, Diversity and Inclusion

Associate Deans:

• Jennifer Best, MD – Associate Dean for Graduate Medical Education
• Anne Browning, PhD - Chief Well-Being Officer, UW Medicine; Associate Dean of Well-Being, University of Washington School of Medicine
• Mary Lenora "Nora" Disis, MD – Associate Dean for Translational Science
• Cindy A. Hamra, JD, MA – Associate Dean, Graduate Medical Education
• Ashlee Harty – Associate Dean for Academic and Medical Staff Affairs
• Marshall S. Horwitz, MD, PhD – Associate Dean for Physician-Scientist
• Paul James, MD – Associate Dean for Primary Care
• Sara Kim, PhD – Associate Dean for Educational Quality Improvement
• Jim Manthey – Associate Dean, Chief Financial Officer
• Heather McPhillips, MD, MPH – Associate Dean for Curriculum
• Angela Moore, MHA – Associate Dean for Administration and Operations
• LeeAnna Muzquiz, MD – ​ Associate Dean for Admissions
• Darryl Potyk, MD – Associate Dean for Eastern Washington
• Gabriel Sarah, MD - Associate Dean for Student Affairs
• Tueng Shen, M.D., PhD – Associate Dean for Medical Technology Innovation
• Mike Tribble – Associate Dean of Regulatory and Business Affairs
• Nathan White – Interim Associate Dean, Research and Graduate Education

Associate Deans – Seattle Clinical Training Sites:

• J. Richard Goss, MD – Associate Dean and Medical Director, Harborview Medical Center
• Jesse Markman, M.D. – Acting Associate Dean and Chief of Staff
• Thomas Staiger, MD – Associate Dean, UW Medical Center
• Leslie Walker-Harding, MD – Associate Dean and Chief Academic Officer, Seattle Children's

Assistant Deans:

• Giana H. Davidson, MD, MPH – Assistant Dean for Professionalism
• Molly Jackson, MD – Assistant Dean for the Colleges
• Edwin Lindo, JD – Assistant Dean for Social and Health Justice
• John McCarthy, MD – Assistant Dean for Rural Programs
• Leo Morales, MD, PhD – Assistant Dean for Quality Improvement/Outcomes Research
• Maya Sardesai, MD, M.Ed. – Assistant Dean for Student Development
• Michelle Terry, MD – Assistant Dean for URMS Career Development
• Gerald Tolbert, MD – Assistant Dean for Student Support (Student Affairs)
• Edith Wang, PhD – Assistant Dean for Basic Science

Assistant Deans at Regional Sites – First-Year Regional Campuses:

• Janelle Clauser, MD – UW Spokane
• Todd Guth, MD, University of Wyoming
• Brant Schumaker, DVM, MPVM, PhD
• Jeffrey Seegmiller, EdD – University of Idaho
• Kathy Young, MD – University of Alaska

Assistant Deans at Regional Sites – Clinical Programs:

• Mary Barinaga, MD – Idaho
• Frank Batcha, MD – Idaho
• Serena Brewer, DO – Montana
• Barbara Doty, MD – Alaska
• Darin Eckert, MD – Spokane
• Jay S. Erickson, MD – Montana
• Geoff Jones, MD – Eastern and Central Washington
• Robert Monger, MD – Wyoming
• Devin Sawyer, MD – Western Washington

• Jeannine Erickson Grinnell – Chief Executive Officer & Chief Financial Officer
• Brian Jones – Chief Information Officer
• Carrie Youngblood – Chief People & Experience Officer
• David Smith – Chief Legal Counsel
• Kalen Privatsky, Executive Vice President – Chief Operating Officer
• Liz Nolan – Chief Communications & Philanthropy Officer
• Matthew Mulder – MD, Chief Physician Officer
• Shahina Banthanavasi, MD – Chief Medical Officer
• Theresa Braungardt – Chief Nursing Officer
• William Park, MD – Chief Ambulatory Officer