The Jacobs Institute of Women’s Health mourns the passing of former Executive Director Susan F. Wood, PhD, on January 17, 2025.
Susan was a beloved teacher, mentor, and friend. She dedicated her career to improving women’s health, first in Congress as an AAAS Congressional Fellow and later as Deputy Director for the Congressional Caucus for Women’s Issues, and then at the Food and Drug Administration. In 2005, she resigned on principle her position as Assistant Commissioner for Women's Health and Director of the Office of Women's Health over the continued delay in approving over-the-counter access to emergency contraception. She then joined George Washington University as a faculty member in the Department of Environmental and Occupational Health, working on the Project on Scientific Knowledge and Public Policy (SKAPP). In 2008, she moved to the Department of Health Policy and Management and became the Executive Director of the Jacobs Institute of Women’s Health. She taught Women's Health both online and in person; led research projects on a range of topics, many of them related to abortion and contraception; and worked with organizations advocating to strengthen scientific integrity at federal agencies. She became a Professor Emerita at the end of 2022.
Susan was an engaging professor, a generous mentor, a valued colleague, and a devoted friend and family member. She paired her expertise in the workings of the executive and legislative branches with a determination to use government to improve women’s health and lives. Those who had the privilege of working with her benefited from both her expertise and her ceaseless good humor. Everyone at the Jacobs Institute and across the GW Milken Institute School of Public Health will treasure their memories of her.
Read more: Susan Wood, FDA official who resigned over Plan B ruling, dies at 66 (Washington Post, 1/23/25)