Harvard’s Judith Palfrey Named Executive Director of Let’s Move Program to Fight Childhood Obesity

First Lady Michelle Obama has selected Judith S. Palfrey as the executive director of the Let’s Move program, an effort to reduce childhood obesity. In accepting the appointment, Dr. Palfrey stated, “As a doctor, I know how important fighting the epidemic of childhood obesity is, and I’ve seen firsthand the struggles families can face in keeping their kids healthy. That’s why I’m eager to build on the successes of Let’s Move and continue to empower parents to make the healthier choices.”

Dr. Palfrey is immediate past president of the American Academy of Pediatrics. She is the inaugural holder of the T. Berry Brazelton Professorship of Pediatrics at Harvard Medical School. She is also director of the global health program at Children’s Hospital in Boston. From 1986 to 2007 she was chief of general pediatrics at Children’s Hospital.

Dr. Palfrey is a graduate of Harvard University and completed her medical training at Columbia University.