WashU nephrologists Leslie Gewin, MD, and Anuja Java, MD, recently participated in the 2024 Mid-Career Women Faculty Leadership Development Seminar. Organized by the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC), the seminar took place December 2-5, 2024, in Santa Ana Pueblo, New Mexico.
This seminar offers mid-career women faculty (defined as having at least two years of experience at the Associate Professor level) the tools they need to continue their progress in academic medicine and science. Over three days, participants explore leadership topics and career strategies through both general and breakout sessions tailored to their specific learning needs and interests, all aimed at enhancing their leadership skills and strategic career planning.
“I look forward to sharing what I’ve learned with the fantastic community of women physicians and investigators here at WashU.”
Leslie Gewin
A physician-scientist, Gewin oversees a basic science research laboratory that is focused on proximal tubule responses to injury and how these responses affect fibrosis and chronic kidney disease progression. In her clinical work, she devotes time to the chronic kidney disease (CKD) clinic and nephrology consults at VA St. Louis Health Care System. Gewin was recently granted a renewal of her VA Merit Award from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs.
Gewin is also one of the core leaders of the recently established Washington University Kidney O’Brien Center for Chronic Kidney Disease (CKD) Research. She heads the Metabolism Core, which focuses on utilizing of metabolic assays to promote advances in CKD-related research. Additionally, Gewin serves as Secretary/Treasurer of the Southern Society for Clinical Investigation where she leads the Tinsley Harrison Scholars Program, which facilitates career development of early-stage physician-scientists.
Visit the Gewin Lab to learn more about her research.
“The seminar was one of the best things I have done for my career so far. Meeting and networking with other women was another big plus. I absolutely loved everything about it.”
Anuja Java
A renowned transplant nephrologist and scientist, Dr. Anuja Java noted that the seminar was very well-structured and hands-on. “It was spread over three days with fantastic topics taught by experienced faculty.”
Personal highlights for Java included gaining insights into her own leadership style as well as how to work with other styles, learning about organizational politics, and participating in small-group workshops where they role-played and honed their negotiation skills.
“I can’t thank WashU’s Department of Medicine and the Division of Nephrology enough for their sponsorship and support,” says Java.
Java is Director of Kidney Transplant at the John Cochran VA Medical Center in St. Louis and is an expert in rare complement diseases and kidney damage. Recently elected as Secretary of the Women in Nephrology (WIN) organization for 2024-2026. She also serves on the Veterans Affairs Kidney Medicine Field Advisory Board where she heads a subcommittee on kidney transplant care for Veterans. Additionally, she co-chairs the NIH-funded Clinical Genome Resource (ClinGen) Complement Gene Curation Expert Panel (GCEP) and is a recipient of a Clinical and Translational Research Funding Program (CTRFP) award, an internal grant funding program of WashU’s Institute of Clinical and Translational Sciences (ICTS).
The beautiful backdrop of serene mountains and nature trails of the Tamara Resort was the perfect setting for the seminar. Thanks to Dr. Java for the following pictures!
Follow @anuja_java, @LeslieGewin and @AAMC on X.
