Mary Ahn links systems of care to help individuals realize their potential

Faculty affairs leader and child psychiatrist brings dual careers together

By Sandra Gray

In her role as vice provost for faculty affairs, Mary Ahn, MD, is finding that many of the skills she uses as a psychiatrist are applicable to faculty development.

Just as the child and adolescent psychiatrist coordinates care for young patients, Dr. Ahn, professor of psychiatry, coordinates resources, systems and supports through the Office of Faculty Affairs to help faculty members thrive and achieve their professional and personal goals.

“What I love about being a child psychiatrist is that you not only work with the child, but you work collaboratively with the family and all of the supports available for that child,” said Ahn. “In faculty affairs, there are so many areas of support that are likewise systemic.”

Board certified in psychiatry and child and adolescent psychiatry, Ahn earned her undergraduate degree from Johns Hopkins University and her medical degree from the University of Illinois at Chicago, followed by residency and fellowship training at McLean and Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School.

After joining UMass Chan in 2009, Ahn assumed increasing responsibilities in training, education and faculty professional development roles, including as vice chair for academic affairs and career development and director of the Career Development and Research Office in the Department of Psychiatry; advisor to the Junior Faculty Development Program; and a coach in the Office of the Chief Experience Officer. She has earned certification from the International Coaching Federation credentialing program for coach practitioners. This career evolution culminated in her appointment as vice provost for faculty affairs in May 2021.

Ahn was born in South Korea and immigrated to the U.S. with her family at age 2. She knew from early childhood that she wanted to be a pediatrician or a psychiatrist. “I think because acquiring the English language was a bit easier for me than it was for my parents, at an early age I often found myself being the spokesperson and I had to be comfortable advocating for myself and mediating discussions.”

These skills serve Ahn well as she oversees all aspects of faculty administration, including faculty appointments, promotion, tenure and post-tenure review, and professional development.

“Our goal is to tailor advice and direction to the faculty member. What is their passion? Where do they want to go? What tools do they need?” she said. “We can then curate the best of what's already being offered or what we can develop. Being in faculty affairs gives me the opportunity to sit at the table to develop policies and procedures that help faculty from a systemic and structural perspective.”

Shaped by her own experiences as an immigrant and woman in medicine, Ahn finds helping colleagues integrate personal and professional goals integral to her work. “My personal life and my home life are just as important to my identity as being a physician and an academic leader,” she said. “I want UMass Chan to be the place to not just work but also to be a person. And I want faculty to know UMass Chan cares about them.” ■