Dr. Laufer is an Established Leader with a Prolific Record in Malaria Research, Pediatric Infectious Diseases, Global Health Initiatives, Research and Educational Programs.The University of Maryland School of Medicine (UMSOM) Dean, Mark T. Gladwin, MD, announced that Miriam K. Laufer, MD, Professor of Pediatrics, Medicine, and Epidemiology & Public Health, has been appointed as the Interim Head of UMSOM's Center for Vaccine Development and Global Health (CVD).
Dr. Laufer assumes this new leadership role with extensive experience in pediatric infectious diseases and global health and a strong commitment to growth and team building. For the past eight years, she has led the Malaria Research Program at the CVD, establishing one of the largest academic malaria research centers in the country. In this capacity, she served as an Associate Director of the CVD under Kathleen Neuzil, MD, MPH, FIDSA, who has been named the 13th director of the Fogarty International Center (FIC), part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH). Dr. Neuzil will also be the Associate Director for International Research at NIH. Dr. Laufer has been a key figure at the University of Maryland School of Medicine, notably as the Associate Dean for Student Research & Education.
Dr. Laufer has been conducting epidemiological and translational research focusing on global infectious diseases for 20 years with the goal of translating scientific discovery into clinically relevant strategies to improve health. She leads a multi-disciplinary and international team of investigators, trainees, and students in the US and throughout the world, dedicated to developing strategies and tools to support the global effort to tackle infectious diseases. In her laboratory at the University of Maryland, her team uses molecular, genomic, and immunological approaches to address some of the most pressing challenges in controlling the burden of malaria.
"I am thrilled that Dr. Miriam Laufer has been named interim director for CVD," said Dr. Neuzil. "Dr. Laufer is a dynamic leader with extensive experience in global health research and a fierce commitment to education and mentorship. As she takes on this pivotal role, her talent for fostering international collaborations and nurturing the next wave of scientific talent will be instrumental in propelling the CVD to achieve new milestones in vaccine development and global health solutions."
Dr. Laufer, who has been a member of the Department of Pediatrics and the CVD since 2004, is a respected academic leader and seasoned clinician-researcher who has contributed extensively to malaria and global child health research and policy.
"Dr. Laufer has an outstanding track record of success in scientific research and education," said Mark T. Gladwin, MD, Vice President for Medical Affairs, University of Maryland, Baltimore, and the John Z. and Akiko K. Bowers Distinguished Professor and Dean, University of Maryland School of Medicine. "Her innovative work and leadership in malaria research and her dedication to mentoring young scientists are just two of the many reasons she is ideally suited to lead the Center as we search for a permanent candidate."
Dr. Laufer's appointment reflects UMSOM's commitment to advancing global health and developing effective interventions against infectious diseases worldwide. Her leadership is expected to continue the Center's tradition of excellence and advance the fight against global health challenges.
As the Interim Head of the Center, Dr. Laufer aims to continue to enhance the Center's impact on global health through basic science and translational and clinical research focusing on vaccine development and novel approaches to combat infectious diseases while fostering global research partnerships.
"It is a privilege to lead this distinguished center that has been my academic home for so long," said Dr. Laufer. “I am committed to supporting our CVD faculty and staff and advancing our mission to address global health disparities and combat infectious diseases.”
Now in its third century, the University of Maryland School of Medicine was chartered in 1807 as the first public medical school in the United States. It continues today as one of the fastest growing, top-tier biomedical research enterprises in the world -- with 46 academic departments, centers, institutes, and programs, and a faculty of more than 3,000 physicians, scientists, and allied health professionals, including members of the National Academy of Medicine and the National Academy of Sciences, and a distinguished two-time winner of the Albert E. Lasker Award in Medical Research. With an operating budget of more than $1.2 billion, the School of Medicine works closely in partnership with the University of Maryland Medical Center and Medical System to provide research-intensive, academic and clinically based care for nearly 2 million patients each year. The School of Medicine has nearly $600 million in extramural funding, with most of its academic departments highly ranked among all medical schools in the nation in research funding. As one of the seven professional schools that make up the University of Maryland, Baltimore campus, the School of Medicine has a total population of nearly 9,000 faculty and staff, including 2,500 students, trainees, residents, and fellows. The combined School of Medicine and Medical System (“University of Maryland Medicine”) has an annual budget of over $6 billion and an economic impact of nearly $20 billion on the state and local community. The School of Medicine, which ranks as the 8th highest among public medical schools in research productivity (according to the Association of American Medical Colleges profile) is an innovator in translational medicine, with 606 active patents and 52 start-up companies. In the latest U.S. News & World Report ranking of the Best Medical Schools, published in 2023, the UM School of Medicine is ranked #10 among the 92 public medical schools in the U.S., and in the top 16 percent (#32) of all 192 public and private U.S. medical schools. The School of Medicine works locally, nationally, and globally, with research and treatment facilities in 36 countries around the world. Visit medschool.umaryland.edu
For over 40 years, researchers in the Center for Vaccine Development and Global Health (CVD) have worked domestically and internationally to develop, test, and deploy vaccines to aid the world’s underserved populations. CVD is an academic enterprise engaged in the full range of infectious disease intervention from basic laboratory research through vaccine development, pre-clinical and clinical evaluation, large-scale pre-licensure field studies, and post-licensure assessments. CVD has created and tested vaccines against cholera, typhoid fever, paratyphoid fever, non-typhoidal Salmonella disease, shigellosis (bacillary dysentery), Escherichia coli diarrhea, nosocomial pathogens, tularemia, influenza, coronaviruses, malaria, dengue, ebola and other infectious diseases. CVD’s research covers the broader goal of improving global health by conducting innovative, leading research in Baltimore and around the world. Our researchers are developing new and improved ways to diagnose, prevent, treat, control, and eliminate diseases of global impact, including COVID-19. In addition, CVD’s work focuses on the ever-growing challenge of antimicrobial resistance.