Getting to Know Allison Eck

MyHMS chats with OCER executive communications manager about speechwriting, the symphony, and middle school diaries

JEFFRY STANTON HMS Community

3 min read

Allison Eck, pictured here with her clarinet, balances her love of words and science with a lifetime passion for music. Image: Taylor Rossi

MyHMS: What do you do at HMS?

Eck: I research and write speeches for Dean George Daley. I also draft many of his emails to the community, and I occasionally contribute articles to Harvard Medicine magazine.

MyHMS: What was your path to HMS?

Eck: After graduating from Hamilton College, where I studied comparative literature and physics, I landed a job at the PBS science documentary series NOVA. I started out managing NOVA’s social media, and eventually became a full-time science reporter, covering everything from climate change to mental health.

I transitioned to MIT’s central development office, drafting personalized correspondence from President Rafael Reif to major philanthropists. I enjoyed ghostwriting but missed the science content. Enter HMS!

I've been in the executive communications manager role since July 2021 and have loved every minute of it.

Allison Eck, pictured here with her clarinet, balances her love of words and science with a lifetime passion for music. Image: Taylor Rossi
Allison Eck, pictured here with her clarinet, balances her love of words and science with a lifetime passion for music. Image: Taylor Rossi

MyHMS: What do you enjoy most about what you do?

Eck: This position is perfectly tailored to my skills and interests, combining my love of science with the opportunity to strategize and do big-picture thinking about how best to convey HMS’ institutional vision and goals.

Speechwriting involves synthesizing and distilling complex ideas into compact, persuasive statements. It’s continually challenging work, but it exercises my brain in a way that is always fresh and invigorating. To make sure, each day, that Dean Daley is able to communicate his messages to the HMS community and the world as effectively as possible is a massive responsibility and privilege. Getting paid to think about the effect of words is, pretty much, a dream.

MyHMS: How do you enjoy your time away from HMS?

Eck: I play principal clarinet with the Cambridge Symphony Orchestra (CSO), and I also serve as the president of its board of directors. Music has been a huge part of my life since fourth grade. In high school I even had the opportunity to perform at Carnegie Hall. The CSO has been a second family to me for a full decade, almost a third of my life, and the euphoria that I feel after each performance continues unabated, even after so many years.

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MyHMS: What is your most treasured possession?

Eck: My childhood diaries. I have four volumes locked in a fireproof safe in case of emergency. Most people dispose of their middle school diaries, but I find a lot of joy in revisiting my adolescent angst. I feel that there are essential parts of ourselves encapsulated in those years that we would all benefit from remembering and channeling more often.

MyHMS: What other plans did you have for what you wanted to be when you grew up?

Eck: When I was a teenager, I wanted to be an astrophysicist, but came to realize I had such varied interests that I couldn't dedicate myself to just one field — that's probably why I ended up in journalism. I really admire those who can commit to a specific area of expertise, and there are so many people like that at HMS.

MyHMS: Who are your heroes?

Eck: Yo-Yo Ma, Brené Brown, and George Saunders—all three seem like amazing, noble, and kind human beings who I would love to meet someday.

This interview has been edited for length and clarity.