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NEW CHAIRHOLDERS

Leading Discovery
Over the past year, nine Houston Methodist leaders were appointed to endowed chairs in recognition of their distinguished expertise and transformative contributions to their respective fields. Made possible through generous philanthropic giving, these positions provide enduring support for research, innovation and advances in patient care.
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Shlomit Schaal, MD, PhD, MHCM Lenny C. Katz Chair in Health Outcomes and Quality in honor of Stuart M. Dobbs, MD Renowned globally for her expertise in vitreoretinal disease and surgery, Dr. Schaal serves as executive vice president and chief physician executive of Houston Methodist and president and CEO of Houston Methodist Physician Organization. A dedicated advocate for physicians and clinicians, she co-launched the Joy in Medicine Initiative to foster a culture of wellness across the system. She also launched the first-of-its-kind Lenny C. Katz Scholars Program, which gives physicians protected time to advance academic initiatives in safety, quality and clinician well-being. Dr. Schaal hosts Houston Methodist’s Leading Medicine Quality Time podcast and Women in Surgery YouTube series, creating forums for meaningful conversations on quality, career journeys and excellence in patient care.
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Stacy L. Auld, DMin, BCC Dr. Ronny W. and Ruth Ann Barner Centennial Chair in Spiritual Care
The Rev. Dr. Auld began her Houston Methodist career in 2009 as a Clinical Pastoral Education resident. Over the next 17 years, she advanced through a series of leadership roles, culminating in her current appointment as vice president of Spiritual Values and Integration. A board-certified chaplain and chair of the Commission on Certification for the Association of Professional Chaplains, she partners with Houston Methodist executives to advance programs that have strengthened and transformed spiritual care across the system. The Rev. Dr. Auld is an ordained elder in the Texas Annual Conference of the United Methodist Church and serves on its clergy leadership team.
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Anthony Echo, MD Henrietta and Terence Hall Distinguished New Century Chair in Orthopedics
Dr. Echo is a board-certified specialist in microvascular and reconstructive plastic surgery and an associate professor of plastic surgery at Weill Cornell Medical College. A 2016 Dyer Fellow, he trained in Doha, Qatar, to treat core muscle injuries and is among the few U.S. surgeons trained in the Muschaweck Minimal Tension Repair technique. He further specializes in complex surgical practices, including peripheral nerve surgery, targeted muscle reinnervation and microsurgical breast reconstruction with sensory restoration. A fellow of the American College of Surgeons, he serves on multiple professional society committees, reviews for leading journals, authors publications and textbook chapters, and mentors the next generation of plastic and orthopedic surgeons.
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Jason “Jay” E. Maddock, PhD The Coneway Family Centennial Endowed Chair in the Center for Health & Nature
Recognized internationally for his work on the effect of environments on human behavior, Dr. Maddock serves as director of the Houston Methodist Center for Health & Nature. The result of a partnership between Houston Methodist and Texas A&M University, the center integrates knowledge about science and the environment to improve patient health through nature-based interventions. As director, Dr. Maddock serves on multiple boards, including the Texas Children in Nature Network, and chaired the Nature and Health Alliance. His research is featured in major national media, and he has served as editor-in-chief of the Journal of Healthy Eating and Active Living since 2020.
Zeenat Safdar, MD Ashley Lain Barras Distinguished Chair in Pulmonology
A specialist in pulmonary arterial hypertension, Dr. Safdar serves as medical director and a founding member of the Houston Methodist Lung Center. She directs the center’s Clinical Research and Pulmonary Fibrosis program, facilitating multiple clinical trials while advancing the field through leadership roles with the Pulmonary Vascular Research Institute, the Pulmonary Hypertension Association, and the Pulmonary Fibrosis Foundation. A fellow of the American Thoracic Society, American College of Physicians and American College of Chest Physicians, Dr. Safdar is also an invited reviewer and editorial board member for leading respiratory and critical care journals.
Jimmy D. Gollihar, Jr., PhD Katz Family Innovative Protein Therapeutics Distinguished Endowed Chair
A protein engineer and synthetic biologist, Dr. Gollihar leads the Antibody Discovery and Accelerated Protein Therapeutics (ADAPT) Laboratory at the Houston Methodist Research Institute. Named a Katz Investigator in the Jerold B. Katz Academy of Translational Research in 2023, he focuses on engineering biology, rational design and artificial intelligence to develop novel therapeutics, diagnostics and vaccines. Dr. Gollihar also serves as chief of translational science at the Research Institute, where he has secured significant research funding and regularly publishes in high-impact scientific journals. His innovations have resulted in more than 10 issued U.S. patents in synthetic biology and protein engineering, with additional patent applications pending.
Charudatta S. Bavare, MD The Allison Family Centennial Chair in Cardiovascular Innovation II
Dr. Bavare is a board-certified vascular surgeon at the Houston Methodist DeBakey Heart & Vascular Center specializing in advanced vascular surgical procedures. His expertise includes open aortic surgery and minimally invasive aortic interventions. Among the few vascular surgeons in the center with privileges spanning laparoscopic, vascular and general surgery, Dr. Bavare is helping expand the use of vascular robotics through the da Vinci Xi platform and is an invited faculty at national and international meetings to teach vascular surgeons on the use of robotics in vascular surgery. He also plays an active role in teaching residents and fellows, clinical research and physician education, contributing to studies and training programs designed to advance vascular care.
Martha Gulati, MD, MS Davis Women’s Heart Endowed Chair
Dr. Gulati is a professor of cardiology and serves as the inaugural director of the Davis Women’s Heart Center at the Houston Methodist DeBakey Heart & Vascular Center. She is an international authority on women’s cardiovascular health, with a clinical interest in sex-specific cardiovascular risk assessment, non-obstructive coronary artery disease and heart disease prevention. Her pioneering research established standards for exercise capacity and heart rate in women, overturning the longstanding assumption that cardiovascular benchmarks derived from men applied equally to women. Dr. Gulati has received numerous honors and is a past president of the American Society for Preventive Cardiology. She also chaired the writing committee for the first joint American Heart Association/American College of Cardiology Chest Pain Guidelines, released in 2021.
J. Christopher Fowler, PhD Kathryn Gen Lumpkins Endowed Chair
Dr. Fowler is a clinical psychologist in the Houston Methodist Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Health whose clinical interests include treatment of adults with severe mental illness. He joined the department in 2018 as director of professional wellness and became executive clinical director of the Monarch Community in 2024, overseeing a long-term residential treatment program for adults with schizophrenia and severe personality disorders. An internationally recognized researcher, Dr. Fowler has authored more than 140 publications. His widely cited 2013 paper, “Core Principles in Treating Suicidal Patients,” synthesizes decades of clinical and research insight and is used extensively in clinical training. He is a former editor of The Bulletin of the Menninger Clinic and serves on several scientific journal editorial boards.