Florette K. Gray Hazard has been appointed chair of the Department of Pathology and Laboratory Sciences at the UC Davis School of Medicine. She will lead a department with 50 faculty, 16 residents, and more than 400 academic and clinical staff.

Hazard comes to UC Davis from Stanford University, where she was a professor of pathology and pediatrics practicing at Stanford Health Care and Stanford Medicine Children's Health.

She was medical director and chief of the anatomic and clinical pathology service at Stanford Medicine Children’s Health and director of the pediatric pathology fellowship program at Stanford University School of Medicine. In addition, she served as vice chair for professional development and diversity in the Department of Pathology.

“Dr. Hazard is a nationally recognized leader, innovator and researcher,” said UC Davis School of Medicine Interim Dean Susan Murin. “We are delighted to welcome her to UC Davis and excited to see her build upon the department’s many successes as she leads the department into the future with planned broad implementation of digital pathology, expansion of molecular pathology, and other new programs and innovations. I am confident she will invigorate and advance all mission areas.”

Hazard said she is grateful to Kuang-yu Jen for his service as interim chair before her arrival and to Interim Dean Murin for her support. She also thanked the pathology faculty, staff and trainees for their great work and patience during this transition period.

She is looking forward to leading the talented group into the future. “This is an exciting time to be a pathologist, and I am delighted to embark on this new era of growth and innovation at UC Davis,” Hazard said.

Hazard attended Princeton University as an undergraduate and earned her medical degree at Georgetown University School of Medicine in Washington, D.C. She completed her pathology residency and surgical pathology fellowship at Stanford University. She also completed a pediatric pathology fellowship at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia at the University of Pennsylvania.

Her research expertise is in the study of rare pediatric tumors, developmental disorders and causes of perinatal morbidity and mortality. She is also interested in the development of new scientific techniques to aid in the study of human disease.

Jen was appointed interim chair in 2023 when Lydia P. Howell retired after chairing the department for 13 years. He will continue his roles as professor in the Department of Pathology and director of renal pathology.