Highlights:
Geeta Krishna Swamy, an Indian-American physician-scientist and women’s health researcher, is set to become the next dean of Boston University’s Chobanian & Avedisian School of Medicine. She will take over the role on January 1, 2027, after spending 22 years at Duke University.
Swamy is a practicing obstetrician-gynecologist and maternal-fetal medicine specialist whose career has combined patient care, medical research and academic leadership. At Duke, she currently serves as the Haywood Brown, MD Distinguished Professor of Women’s Health, associate vice president for research, and executive vice dean for clinical sciences and research administration.
Boston University selected Swamy following a national search. She will succeed Karen Antman, who stepped down as dean in 2025 after two decades in the position. Hee-Young Park has served as interim dean since then.
Swamy said the opportunity to bring together Boston University, the medical school, Boston Medical Center and the broader Boston community was a major reason she was drawn to the position. She said she looks forward to working with faculty, staff, students and partners as the school enters its next chapter.
Her academic career has focused heavily on women’s and children’s health. Her research has examined perinatal infections, maternal immunization and pregnancy-related complications. She has also studied the long-term effects of premature birth and infectious diseases during pregnancy.
Swamy earned a bachelor’s degree in public health and biostatistics and her medical degree from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. She completed her obstetrics and gynecology residency at the University of Pittsburgh before undertaking a maternal-fetal medicine fellowship at Duke.
She joined Duke as an assistant professor in 2004 and subsequently took on a series of clinical, research and administrative positions. Her roles have included associate professor of obstetrics and gynecology, senior associate dean of the School of Medicine, and vice dean and associate vice provost for scientific integrity.
Her research earned recognition from the National Institutes of Health, including a Young Investigator Award for Perinatal Research in 2008. She was also recognized for research examining the impact of the 2009 H1N1 pandemic on women.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, Swamy participated in vaccine research at Duke, including work examining the safety and effectiveness of COVID-19 vaccines for pregnant women. Her broader research has also explored environmental, social and political factors affecting health outcomes among women and children.
Swamy will become the 19th leader of Boston University’s medical school. One of her priorities will be strengthening collaboration between Boston University and Boston Medical Center Health System, whose partnership spans roughly three decades.
Her appointment comes as the medical school continues to expand its research efforts, including work connected to the Framingham Heart Study and research into historically underexamined women's health conditions.
