Harvard Medical School faculty and staff gathered in the Medical Education Center atrium on June 3 to officially welcome the School’s new executive dean for administration, John Czajkowski.
Czajkowski comes to HMS from the National Cancer Institute, where he served as deputy director for management, overseeing an annual budget of nearly $5 billion and a workforce of approximately 3,500 people.
At the morning reception, Jeffrey S. Flier, dean of the Faculty of Medicine, called Czajkowski the “best possible person for the position” and the unanimous choice of the dean’s advisory committee, which recommended Czajkowski based on his “intelligence, insights, judgment and values.”
“I think everyone here knows, or should know, the importance of this position,” Flier said, adding that Czajkowski comes to Harvard with a “remarkable career in administrative leadership in government” and a proven ability to work with “smart, effective people.”
Czajkowski said he looked forward to living in Boston, having spent his entire life in the Washington, D.C., area.
“I’m thrilled to be here, and I will give you all I’ve got,” he said.
At the NCI, Czajkowski directly supervised the Office of Management, which is responsible for the institute’s administrative and legislative efforts.
In addition to the NCI, Czajkowski held senior administrative positions at the National Institutes of Health, overseeing budgets in the Office of the Director, the Center for Information Technology, the Center for Scientific Review and the Office of Strategic Management Planning. He was also director of the Office of Management for the U.S. Department of the Treasury, where he was chief financial officer.
At HMS, Czajkowski will oversee vital administrative functions, including finance, facilities and operations, communications and external relations, human resources, institutional planning, information technology, and research operations. He will also serve as a key strategic advisor to the dean for developing plans for the future of HMS.
Czajkowski has a degree in economics from the University of Maryland, Baltimore County, and a Master’s of Public Administration from American University. He succeeds Rick Mills, who held the position from 2010 to 2013 before leaving HMS last July to become executive vice president and chief financial officer at Dartmouth College.
Flier praised Chief Financial Officer Wes Benbow, who served as interim executive dean, for his “stalwart service.” Benbow will return to his former duties as finance dean at HMS.
