A physician with deep roots in the local community and extensive experience in sports medicine has been selected as Amherst College’s new director of Student Health Services.
Dr. Emily Jones will replace Dr. Warren Morgan, who is retiring this fall.
Amherst’s Health Center staff describe the appointment as a “good fit” and enthuse about Jones’ depth of knowledge and collaborative nature.
Jones was born and raised in Amherst, where she’s had long family ties. After receiving her B.A. in economics from Princeton and her M.D. from the University of Massachusetts, Jones did her residency and a sports medicine fellowship at VCU-Fairfax Family Practice in Virginia. She was also a physician at Dartmouth-Hitchcock in Concord, N.H., where she worked closely with the school physician at St. Paul’s School and was the consulting physician at New England College.
In a call from her Amherst home, Jones said she was looking forward to continuing the good work at the Health Center of addressing the wide variety of student needs: mental health, physical health, emergency needs and routine care.
“I’m excited to be part of the process as the Health Center evolves,” she said, adding that the goal was to help students “be at their best.”
Having overseen the hiring process, Chief Student Affairs Officer Suzanne Coffey praised Jones’ personable nature, openness to ideas and extensive experience. Coffey noted that Jones has extensive ties to the Town of Amherst, where her father, Dr. Emlen Jones, was a beloved pediatrician for many years.
“She will be a great leader on campus,” Coffey said, adding that the Student Health Services staff particularly likes Jones’ “ideas and openness to their ideas.”
Jones’ specialization in sports medicine—coupled with her history as an All-American rower, marathon runner and triathlete—will be particularly helpful to a community where so many students participate in athletics at all levels, Coffey said.
“Sports medicine is all about getting back out there,” Coffey said. “So, for a student, of course, it’s really important [for the health care provider] to have that attitude.”
Shirley Moe, a registered nurse at the Health Center, and Nurse Practitioner Alyssa Pawlowski said that, even as they bid farewell to their former director, they were excited to welcome Jones. They described the new director as “vibrant” and noted that she was looking forward to collaborating with other departments on campus.
“She’s the kind of director who values every team member that she works with, and that’s so important to all of us,” Moe said.
“She’s going to be a great fit for the team,” Pawlowski agreed. “We’re so excited!”