Susan Taylor, MD
PHILADELPHIA – Susan Taylor, MD, the Bernett L. Johnson, Jr., M.D. Professor and the vice chair of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in the department of Dermatology at the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, has been elected the 84th president of the American Academy of Dermatology (AAD)—the largest society of dermatologists in the world. She will serve as president-elect from March 2024 to March 2025 and then act as president from March 2025 to March 2026. Taylor has made history becoming the sixth woman and the first person of African American descent to serve as president of the AAD.
A graduate of Harvard Medical School and a Penn undergrad alumna, Taylor was the vice president of the AAD from 2020-2021. She is a nationally and internationally recognized expert in alopecia pigmentary disorders and has authored over 100 peer-reviewed articles. Taylor has also focused on health equity, increasing knowledge and representation of populations with skin of color in medical textbooks and education. Her goal is to ensure clinicians are better able to serve these patients. Taylor is also passionate about mentorship and is the founder and director of the skin of color pre-residency fellowship program in the department of Dermatology at Penn.
“It is an honor to be elected to this position by my peers,” said Taylor. “Our society of dermatologists is well positioned to continue pushing dermatologic care forward and looking out for the well-being and best interests of our patients. I look forward to using the role to promote the AAD strategic goal of excellence in care through education and advocacy.”
While presidents’ terms last one year, their responsibilities begin one year before their terms and end one year after in order to facilitate smooth leadership transitions.
“We are incredibly fortunate to have Dr. Taylor on our faculty,” said George Cotsarelis, MD, the chair of Dermatology at Penn. “She will not only bring passion and years of experience to her role but also add an important dimension, as she has in her role at Penn as the department’s vice chair of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion. She understands how to make important and effective systemic changes in order to ensure access and care for all people.”
Since its founding in 1938, the AAD has been focused on furthering clinical care, research, and education related to skin, hair, and nails. Currently, there are over 20,000 physician members of the AAD.
Penn Medicine is one of the world’s leading academic medical centers, dedicated to the related missions of medical education, biomedical research, excellence in patient care, and community service. The organization consists of the University of Pennsylvania Health System and Penn’s Raymond and Ruth Perelman School of Medicine, founded in 1765 as the nation’s first medical school.
The Perelman School of Medicine is consistently among the nation's top recipients of funding from the National Institutes of Health, with $550 million awarded in the 2022 fiscal year. Home to a proud history of “firsts” in medicine, Penn Medicine teams have pioneered discoveries and innovations that have shaped modern medicine, including recent breakthroughs such as CAR T cell therapy for cancer and the mRNA technology used in COVID-19 vaccines.
The University of Pennsylvania Health System’s patient care facilities stretch from the Susquehanna River in Pennsylvania to the New Jersey shore. These include the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania, Penn Presbyterian Medical Center, Chester County Hospital, Lancaster General Health, Penn Medicine Princeton Health, and Pennsylvania Hospital—the nation’s first hospital, founded in 1751. Additional facilities and enterprises include Good Shepherd Penn Partners, Penn Medicine at Home, Lancaster Behavioral Health Hospital, and Princeton House Behavioral Health, among others.
Penn Medicine is an $11.1 billion enterprise powered by more than 49,000 talented faculty and staff.