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Saturday Plenary
- A Physician and a Biographer Ponder the Past to Forge the Future
  
  As the AAMC marks its 150th anniversary and the United States its 250th, we find ourselves, our institutions, and our nation navigating a period of profound change. During the opening plenary session of Learn Serve Lead 2026: The AAMC Annual Meeting, family physician and online personality Mikhail Varshavski, DO — known to his millions of social media followers as “Doctor Mike”— and Pulitzer Prize-winning biographer Stacy Schiff will connect history’s lessons to today’s challenges (and tomorrow’s unknowns). They will explore how institutions and individuals navigate periods of upheaval, shifting public trust, and emerging ideas. Together, they will help us reflect on what endures, what must evolve, and how history can illuminate the responsibilities of leadership.
  
  Speakers
  
  "Doctor Mike" Varshavski, DO
  
  Board-certified Family Medicine Physician
  Influencer
  
  Stacy Schiff
  
  Pulitzer Prize-Winning Author
SUNDAY PLENARY
- Keeping What Really Matters at the Forefront of Academic Medicine
  
  Academic medicine’s future will be shaped not only by new discoveries but also by how clear-eyed we are about ourselves and the people we serve. We’re all dealing with a lot — from disruptive technology and an avalanche of data to concern about well-being and burnout — while trying to remain grounded in purpose, trust, and human connection. This Learn Serve Lead plenary session will explore how to preserve academic medicine’s meaning in these uncertain times through an insightful conversation with Nadine Burke Harris, MD, MPH, a pediatrician, researcher, and California’s first surgeon general; Joel Bervell, MD, a physician, science communicator, and leading voice on health equity and the public understanding of medicine; and Kelly Corrigan, a bestselling author and the host of the “Kelly Corrigan Wonders” podcast. Our speakers will reflect on how to truly see the people academic medicine serves, sustain the meaning of our work, and reaffirm the human practices and values that are foundational to medicine.
  
  Speakers
  
  Nadine Burke Harris, MD, MPH, FAAP
  
  Pediatrician and California’s First Surgeon General
  
  Joel Bervell, MD
  
  Peabody Award Winner
  Science Communicator
  
  Facilitator
  
  Kelly Corrigan
  
  Bestselling Author
  Host of Tell Me More on PBS and Kelly Corrigan Wonders Podcast
MONDAY PLENARY
- AAMC Leadership Plenary
  
  A signature moment of Learn Serve Lead: The AAMC Annual Meeting, the Leadership Plenary brings together the association’s senior leadership to reflect on the state of academic medicine and envision the path ahead.
  
  Speakers
  
  Michael Waldrum, MD, MSc, MBA
  
  CEO, ECU Health
  Dean, Brody School of Medicine at East Carolina University
  Chair, AAMC Board of Directors
  
  David J. Skorton, MD
  
  President and CEO, AAMC
  
  Facilitator
  
  Nita Ahuja, MD, MBA, FACS
  
  Dean, University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health
  Vice Chancellor for Medical Affairs, UW–Madison
  Chair-elect, AAMC Board of Directors

A Physician and a Biographer Ponder the Past to Forge the Future

Speakers

"Doctor Mike" Varshavski, DO

Stacy Schiff

Keeping What Really Matters at the Forefront of Academic Medicine

Speakers

Nadine Burke Harris, MD, MPH, FAAP

Joel Bervell, MD

Facilitator

Kelly Corrigan

AAMC Leadership Plenary

Speakers

Michael Waldrum, MD, MSc, MBA

David J. Skorton, MD

Facilitator

Nita Ahuja, MD, MBA, FACS