Leadership
H. Barrett Fromme, MD, MHPE
Pritzker School of Medicine, The University of Chicago
Director
Elizabeth Chawla, MD
Georgetown University School of Medicine
Donna M. D'Alessandro, MD
University of Iowa
Kajal Khanna, MD, JD
Stanford University
Terry Kind, MD, MPH
George Washington University School of Medicine & Health Sciences
Marta King, MD, MED
St. Louis University
Su-Ting T. Li, MD, MPH
UC Davis
Sylvia W. Lim, MD
Montefiore-Einstein College of Medicine
Emma Omoruyi, MD, MPH
McGovern Medical School at The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston
Deborah Rana, MD, MSc
UCSD School of Medicine
Michael Ryan, MD, MEHP
University of Virginia
Janet Serwint, MD
Johns Hopkins University
Developed by the National Academy of Distinguished Educators in Pediatrics (NADEP), Transforming Horizons through Reflection, Inspiration, Vitality, and Engagement (THRIVE) is a 1-year program designed to foster career vitality, engagement, and joy among academic pediatricians.
Who should apply: Faculty at all career stages looking to rediscover joy, engagement, and/or energy in their professional lives.
Unique features of the program:
- Interactive, hybrid curriculum:
- Face-face-sessions at PAS over two consecutive years.
- Four virtual sessions between PAS
- “Office hours” with faculty facilitators to provide ongoing mentorship.
- Peer group mentorship: All sessions will take place within a cohort model, offering participants the chance to form relationships from peers over the duration of the program and beyond.
- Networking: Intentional programming to allow participants to showcase their work, increase their visibility, and augment and strengthen their professional network
- Faculty mentorship: Longitudinal mentorship from a nationally representative group of academic pediatricians.
- Bringing It Back: Mentored development of presentation for home institution, sharing key concepts learned in program.
Learn more about this program by attending an information webinar on Tue., October 21, 2025 at 3pm ET. Register here.
Program Objectives:
By the end of the program participants will be able to:
- Identify their individual strengths and areas for professional growth
- Identify current challenges to their career satisfaction
- Define their values and what helps them flourish in their professional lives
- Develop and re/define career goals
- Develop a career development and/or sustainability approach
- Participate in a national community of peers to support career vitality
- Describe foundational concepts in career vitality, joy, and meaning to others
Program Overview:
| Setting | Topics |
|---|---|
| PAS 2026 Pre-Conference (4h) | • Program Overview • Introductions/Cohort Development • Vitality, Values, and Goal Setting: A Primer • Connecting with Joy and Meaning • Personal Vision, Values, Mission to Set Your Goals |
| Virtual Intersessions • 1.5 hours each • Expert invited speakers | • Promoting Your Well-Being • Reimagining Your Professional Brand • Navigating Career Opportunities • Panel on Career Communities of Practice and Vitality |
| PAS 2027 Pre-Conference (3.5h) | • Cohort Reconnection • Year in Review of Vitality Successes • Key Vitality Lessons Shared • Reception |
Apply
Applications Open: October 20, 2025
Applications Close: December 5, 2025, 11:59 p.m. PT
Applicant Eligibility Criteria:
Academic pediatricians of all career stages, including clinicians and scientists.
Interested applicants must submit:
- Demographic summary
- Name
- Degree(s)
- Institution
- Focus area (general or subspecialty) within academic pediatrics
- Academic rank
- A short response to the following four questions:
- What aspects of your professional life bring you joy or meaning? What feels challenging, unsustainable, or makes you wonder what you need to truly thrive?
- What do you hope to gain from participating in the THRIVE program?
- How do you envision bringing what you learn back to your team, department, or institution?
- What aspects of your background, identity, or perspective do you think will enrich the THRIVE community?
- An attestation that your supervisor supports your participation, including attendance at all sessions.
Tuition & Fees:
- There is a $125 application fee
- Tuition is due 45 days after acceptance:
- $2,000 for APA members
- $2,500 for non-APA members and you will be given APA membership for one year
Please contact the APA office if the application fee and/or tuition limits your ability to apply.
FAQs
Who is this program for?
This program is designed for academic pediatricians across the career spectrum who are committed to academic medicine and seeking renewed energy, purpose, and connection in their work. Applicants should be open to reflection, growth, and building community with peers.
I am a pediatric subspecialist, can I apply?
Yes. This program is designed for academic pediatricians of all career types. If you are seeking to maintain, strengthen, or reignite your sense of purpose, connection, and vitality, this experience is for you. This program is for anyone committed to growing intentionally and sustaining a meaningful career in academic medicine.
I’m not burned out— is this for me?
Yes. This program is for anyone who wants to invest in their well-being and long-term sustainability in academic pediatrics. Perhaps you are at an inflection point in your career or just want to maintain or bolster the engagement, sustainability, and vitality you currently enjoy.
How does this differ from existing wellness programs that our institution has or that are offered nationally?
Most of these programs focus on wellness and engagement, with attention to ease of practice. We focus on flourishing where you reconnect to meaning and joy. Wellness is surviving, but flourishing is thriving.
What will I gain from the program?
Participants will leave with practical tools for vitality, strategies to align their work with personal values, a supportive national peer coaching network, and a renewed sense of purpose and direction in their careers. It is designed to equip participants with practical, sustainable tools—not just one-time inspiration.
How can I present the case for my department or institution to financially support my participation in this program?
Each participant will be supported in creating a formal presentation of key concepts to bring back to their institution to expand the impact of their experience. The financial investment goes beyond the individual participant and has potential to benefit your department or institution. Participants can share tools with colleagues, serve as role models for vitality, lead faculty development efforts, and contribute to a more positive departmental culture.
What is the time commitment?
The program is one year, including anchoring in-person programming at PAS 2026 and 2027, with 4 interval 1.5h virtual sessions. In addition, participants are asked to deliver a vitality session at their home institution. We’ve designed it to be meaningful and manageable alongside clinical and academic responsibilities.
Can this program help with promotion or career advancement?
Indirectly, yes. By helping participants clarify goals, build leadership skills, network, and sustain motivation, the program supports long-term academic success and advancement.
Who selects the participants and what are the criteria?
The APA’s THRIVE Steering Committee will select the participants. The ideal participant can offer candid reflections on how/why this program will provide benefit to their professional lives and potentially the lives of others in their networks. Qualities we value include: self-awareness, honesty, motivation to grow, and diverse ideas participants may share with co-participants and faculty to help maximize the potential of this program.
