Dr. Chima D. Ndumele, MPH, PhD, has been appointed Chair of the Department of Health Policy and Management, effective July 1, 2025. Dr. Ndumele also was recently promoted to Professor of Public Health (Health Policy).
Dr. Ndumele succeeds Dr. Jason Hockenberry, PhD, Associate Dean of Faculty Affairs, in the role of chair. Dr. Hockenberry was recruited by the Yale School of Public Health (YSPH) to serve as department chair in January 2021, a role he graciously agreed to continue in until a successor was named after he accepted the role of Associate Dean in January 2024. Dean Megan L. Ranney, MD, said she greatly appreciates Dr. Hockenberry's leadership on both the departmental and school levels.
Dr. Ndumele brings a wealth of experience in health policy to his new role. Since joining YSPH in 2013, he has distinguished himself through an innovative research agenda that advances smart government program reform. He is a nationally recognized health policy researcher with a deep understanding of, and vision for, improving the outcomes of low-income populations and the effectiveness of the government programs that serve them. He is particularly well known for conducting research that examines how policy changes impact Medicaid care, and has received multiple awards (including YSPH’s Team Science award) for this work. He has investigated whether and how private and public organizations can collaborate to improve health care delivery, and he partners with state governments to enhance the efficiency of services administered within the social safety net. His work has been featured in leading policy and health services journals such as JAMA, Health Affairs, and the Annals of Internal Medicine, has been extensively covered by major news outlets, and has been used by policymakers nationwide.
He also plays a leadership role in both professional and policy settings. At AcademyHealth, the leading professional society for health services and health policy researchers, he has been honored as a distinguished junior scholar and served as the co-chair for the 2021 Annual Research Meeting. In 2023, he was selected as an emerging leader by the National Academy of Medicine. He serves on the Connecticut Advisory Board for Transparency on Medicaid Costs and Quality, and the advisory boards of FAIRHealth and the Parity Center, among other organizations. Through local and national mentoring he has demonstrated a deep commitment to fostering the professional development of junior scholars, especially those from traditionally underrepresented groups.
At YSPH, Dr. Ndumele co-leads the SCALE research group with his Health Policy colleague Dr. Jacob Wallace, PhD. He has served as faculty leader on the YSPH Committee on Academic and Professional Integrity (CAPI) for the past six years, and he is serving as a core member of our Strategic Plan team. He also is affiliated with the Institution for Social and Policy Studies and the Tobin Center for Economic Policy at Yale.
Dr. Ndumele eceived his PhD from Brown University School of Public Health, his MPH from Tufts University, and his BS in behavioral neuroscience from Northeastern University. He received the Alumni Impact Award from Brown University School of Public Health in 2024.
"Please join me in congratulating Chima on his new role," Dean Ranney said in a schoolwide announcement. "I look forward to working with him as our school leads in shaping the future of public health education, research, and practice."