Sherise Chantell Rogers, MD, MBA, MPH, has been appointed as the Interim Associate Director for Community Outreach and Engagement (COE) at the Legorreta Cancer Center at Brown University, following the departure of Dr. Sheldon Holder. Holder leaves Brown this summer to become the Hematology Oncology Division Chief at the Cancer Network of West Michigan.
Dr. Rogers is a distinguished physician-scientist-leader who recently joined Brown as an Assistant Professor of Medicine in the Division of Hematology/Oncology from the University of Florida. A highly accomplished academic, she holds an MD and MPH and recently earned her MBA from Yale University as a Pozen-Commonwealth Fund Fellow in Health Equity Leadership—a prestigious program designed to develop transformative leaders committed to improving healthcare access and outcomes in disparity populations.
Nationally recognized for her contributions in cancer disparities, Dr. Rogers has led studies focused on improving representation of all populations in clinical trials and developing innovative strategies to engage communities in cancer prevention and treatment. As a clinical trials investigator, she has championed initiatives to design studies that reflect the needs of under-resourced populations and to integrate community voices into research priorities.
In her new role, Dr. Rogers will leverage her expertise to strengthen and expand the Legorreta Cancer Center’s community engagement and outreach programs. She will collaborate with leaders at Brown Health, Care New England, and Brown University to create a strategic, data-driven plan that addresses Rhode Island’s cancer burden and enhances access to prevention, screening, and clinical trials for all populations.
Dr. Rogers brings to this role a deep commitment to health equity, extensive experience engaging with broad populations and stakeholders across healthcare, academia, and beyond, and a passion for building partnerships that translate into meaningful health outcomes.
Stephanie Graff, MD, FASCO, has been appointed the inaugural Associate Director for Global Oncology and Policy at the Legorreta Cancer Center at Brown University. Graff, an Oncologist, is the Director of Breast Oncology at Brown University Health and an Associate Professor of Medicine and co-leader of the Breast Cancer Translational Disease Group. With expertise in conducting multi-institutional large scale randomized clinical trials and col-leading translational research projects. Dr. Graff’s research focuses on novel targeted therapies, check point inhibitors, chemotherapeutics and cancer vaccines.
In addition to her leadership in clinical research, Graff is nationally recognized for her leadership at the American Cancer Society National Breast Cancer Roundtable as an American Society of Clinical Onocology (ASCO) Representative, with the National Consortium of Breast Centers, with SWOG Cancer Research Network, and with ASCO for which she is a Fellow in addition to an Advocacy Champion.
In her role, Dr. Graff will leverage her expertise to drive the strategic direction of the Legorreta Cancer Center’s global oncology initiatives and expand the Center’s contributions to local and national oncology focused policy.
Please join us in warmly welcoming Dr. Rogers and Dr. Graff to the Legorreta leadership team as they undertake these important roles.