About AFMRD

Association of Family Medicine Residency Directors caters exclusively to family medicine residency directors and associate program directors. With a sharp focus on leadership, the AFMRD has successfully served the family medicine residency director community and positively influenced the direction of the discipline for more than 30 years.

AFMRD impact by the numbers...  

  • Over two-thirds of Family Medicine Program Directors are AFMRD Members. Our accrediting body ACGME counts 771 Family Medicine Residency Programs (Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education). 
  • Annually, AFMRD membership continues to exceed 1,000 members, including program directors, associate directors, associate members, and others.  
  • Interest in the National Institute for Program Director Development (NIPDD) continues to climb, as applications far exceed available spots year after year.  
  • AFMRD Members downloaded 6,400 webinars, articles, handbooks, interview guides, policies, assessments, and more through our PD Toolbox in 2023 alone.

MISSION

The Association of Family Medicine Residency Directors (AFMRD) inspires and empowers family medicine residency leaders to continually pursue excellence in family medicine residency training. 

VISION
AFMRD envisions a vibrant community of family medicine residency leaders engaged in excellence, collaboration, innovation, and advocacy to meet the needs of current and future family physicians and the health care needs of the public. 

Values

  • Quality in family medicine graduate medical education
  • Innovation to enhance family medicine residency education
  • Highest level of ethics and integrity in all actions
  • Mutual collaboration among family medicine residency directors for the common good
  • Alliance building with organizations that impact family medicine training
  • Inclusivity and diversity in family medicine education

Leadership

President
Sarah Z. Cole,DO, FAAFP
St. Louis, MO
President-Elect
Raj Woolever, MD, FAAFP
Augusta, ME
Immediate Past President
Kim Stutzman, MD
Nampa, ID
Treasurer
Kelsie Kelly, MD, MPH
Kansas City, KS
Member-at-Large
Parastou Farhadian, MD, CPE, FAAFP
Panorama City, CA
Member-at-Large
Santina Wheat, MD, MPH
Chicago, IL
Member-at-Large
Grace Chen Yu, MD
San Jose, CA
Member-at-Large
Barbara Miller, MD
Joplin, MO
Member-at-Large
Nicholas Schenk, MD
Monroe, MI
Member-at-Large
Sarah Holder, DO
Atlantic City, NJ
Member-at-Large
Alysia Herzog, MD
Columbus, OH
Associate PD Representative
Varshaben Songara, MD
Dunn, NC
Resident Representative
Ijeoma Amanze, MD
Monroe, LA
AFMA Liaison
Pamela MacMillan
Cheyenne,  WY

Meet Your AFMRD Staff

Lisa Ochs
Executive Director

Neil Robertson
Deputy Executive Director

Lindsay Blake
Program Specialist

Cristin Estes
Program Specialist

Nina DeJonghe

Council of Academic
Family Medicine - Government Relations

Jay Fetter

SOAR Community of Practice Program Manager

History

In 1990, the group now referred to as the Association of Family Medicine Residency Directors (AFMRD) began its first year as an organization devoted to the representation of family medicine program directors. Since that time, the organization has grown from representing 20 residency programs, to representing more than 600 programs.

In 1995, the AFMRD received funding to produce a printed history of the organization. Explore a digital copy to view highlights of the organization’s first years, and the goals for which the organization was established.

For more information on the history of AFMRD and family medicine, visit the Center for the History of Family Medicine.

Learn More About AFMRD