Sad News: Jon Chilingerian
May 11, 2023
Dear Brandeis Community,
I am sad to share that Professor Jon Chilingerian died on May 5, 2023 at the age of 72. Jon is survived by his wife, Dianne, and his two children, Christine ‘07 and John ‘10, Heller MBA ‘16.
Jon received his PhD from the Sloan School of Management at MIT and joined the Heller faculty in 1987. At the Heller School for Social Policy and Management, Jon added “Management” and an accredited MBA to our school. He did so first with the launch in 1995 of a joint MD-MBA program with Tufts University’s medical school, one of the first such programs in the nation. Stuart Altman, the Sol C. Chaikin Professor of National Health Policy, brought Jon to the Heller School, and was a wonderful colleague and dear friend. In 1998 what is now the Heller Social Impact MBA was launched with Jon’s leadership, and in 2016 Jon led the launch of the Executive MBA (EMBA) for physicians. The EMBA program has graduated over 200 physician leaders advancing the frontiers of health care in the United States and worldwide. When the current cohort of physicians learned of Jon’s passing, they commented, “Jon taught us to be adaptable, so we honor him even as we have to adjust to this terrible news.” Everyone remembers him as a force of nature. He led innovation at the frontiers of health care and management with unmatched passion and insight.
Jon was a national leader in working with medical societies to advance professional development for physicians, including work with the American College of Surgeons, the Thoracic Surgery Foundation for Research and Education, the European Health Leaders Program, and the Advanced Health Policy and Leadership Academy in partnership with the Hanley Center in Maine.
As a scholar, Jon co-authored International Health Care Management and The Lessons and the Legacy of the Pew Health Policy Program. Jon recently completed his latest book, The New Science of Medicine and Management: A Comprehensive Case-Based Guide for Clinical Leaders. He published scholarly papers and reviewed essays in journals such as Annals of Operational Research, Medical Care, European Journal of Operational Research, Health Services Research, Health Care Management Review, Medical Care Research and Review, Inquiry, Health Services Management Research, and The Journal of Health Politics, Policy, and Law. He pioneered using Data Envelopment Analysis in health care, advancing quality, productivity, and technical change in orthopedic, cardiac, and breast cancer surgeries. Jon brought Heller the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) predoctoral fellowships.
Jon brought practical expertise to his studies, building on his service as Assistant Health Commissioner for the City of Boston. Jon served as past-chair of the Health Care Management Division of the Academy of Management, the 2010 recipient of the Myron Fottler Exceptional Service Award for the Academy of Management, and the 2016 Dr Royce Laycock Recognition of Excellence, American College of Surgeons, Association for Surgical Education. This April, Jon was awarded the Heller Teaching Excellence Award based on enthusiastic votes by EMBA students.
I am grateful to Maria Madison, interim dean of the Heller School, and to Dianne Chilingerian for their contributions to this memoriam.
Services for Jon will take place at St. Stephen’s Armenian Church, Elton Avenue, Watertown, MA this Friday, May 12, at 12 noon. A visitation period will be held at St. Stephen’s immediately prior, from 11 am-12pm. Interment at Oak Grove Cemetery in Falmouth, MA on Saturday at 11am.
For people wishing to honor Jon’s memory with a donation, his family suggests contributing to the “Jon A. Chilingerian Scholarship Fund,” Heller School Executive MBA Program, for future physician leaders to study in the EMBA program, or to St. Stephen’s Armenian Church, Watertown.
Sincerely,
Carol A. Fierke
Provost and Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs