Getting to know Yale leaders—Stephanie Spangler

Stephanie Spangler is vice provost for Health Affairs and Academic Integrity; University Title IX coordinator; clinical professor of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Sciences; and, since early 2020, Yale’s COVID-19 coordinator.

Stephanie joined the Office of the Provost in 1995. She oversees Yale Health and Environmental Health and Safety, and over the years has supported, overseen, and participated in numerous health-related activities involving the Schools of Medicine, Nursing, and Public Health. She is a member of the university’s labor-management policy board where her particular focus is on health benefits and clinical issues. She also oversees the Provost’s Office of Academic Integrity, established in 2011, to work with colleagues throughout the university to fortify and consolidate programs and procedures relating to academic integrity. Additionally, she is charged with leadership of university-wide Title IX compliance and related initiatives.

Stephanie earned her M.D. at Brown University and completed her residency training in obstetrics and gynecology at Yale-New Haven Hospital. Before assuming her present position, Dr. Spangler served as director of Yale Health, the university’s health care delivery system serving faculty, employees, students, and their dependents.

What were the challenges of the pandemic for you as Yale’s COVID coordinator?
I don’t think anybody knew exactly what to expect when our pandemic journey began in the winter of 2020. Even many months later, we must still accept the fact that we can’t know everything and that, to protect the health and safety of our community, we must use the information available to make the best decisions we can while knowing that the information—and indeed the virus itself—is likely to change. In a university, we are, of course, used to exploring areas where there is little existing information, that’s the point of scholarship and research, but those explorations are rarely accompanied by the degree of urgency and breadth of risk posed by the pandemic.

The opportunities were?

Innumerable. Amidst all the uncertainties, what I did know from the outset is that we would be able to draw upon the expertise, ingenuity, and commitment of colleagues across campus to develop the programs we needed to keep the community as safe as possible. It has been simply breathtaking to see how so many people—scholars, operational leaders, staff, faculty and students– have come together in ways they never imagined before, in a situation they had never experienced before, to create programs—from testing to contact tracing to vaccinations– that never existed before at Yale or elsewhere.  I hope that we will continue to engage the skill, creativity, collegiality, and dedication of the members of our campus community to address Yale’s goals and aspirations in post pandemic times as effectively and energetically as we did when facing COVID-19.

What do you think is the best advice a leader can receive?
I think it is extremely important for leaders to invite a variety of opinions and input when setting goals and making decisions, especially with regard to challenging issues. To listen and not be afraid of what they hear, to welcome opposing views, to embrace unsolved problems and to fully understand the problems—and underlying interests–before formulating solutions. I imagine we’ve all encountered situations where a host of really intriguing solutions is put on the table before the problem is fully understood and where none of those creative solutions addresses the problem at hand.  That said, I do appreciate that one rarely has the luxury of unlimited time when important decisions need to be made, and that solicitation and analysis of input must proceed in a timely way.

What are you reading?
I’ve been reading, and I’m still reading, article after article after article about the pandemic—and, given the seriousness and urgency of the situation, these articles are being produced at a rapid pace.  When I am not steeped in the study of COVID-19, I enjoy reading poetry. I read a variety of poets so can’t point to a favorite, but poetry, for me, is a language that takes me to different places and evokes different parts of my own experience. I also like reading biographies and enjoy early music.  I’m getting a dose of both in a book called “Mozart’s Women,” which is the story of Mozart’s life and art told through the lens of his mother, his sister, his partners, and the artists he worked with.

What musical artists are you listening to these days?
I listen to a lot of music of all sorts, and I also play piano and enjoy performing Renaissance music. By “performing,” I mean that I sing and my husband accompanies me on his recorder, but only in the confines of our home (perhaps with a startled bird or two for an audience). I also enjoy opera, and, when I do not have time to listen to an entire opera, I often engage in selective “comparative listening” by choosing one aria from an opera and listening (yes, on YouTube) to it performed by different artists from different eras.

Did your parents influence you musically?
My father did. My father was actually a businessman who started as a clerk in the shipping department of Hershey Chocolate and eventually became president of the chocolate and confectionary division of the corporation. That was his career and he loved chocolate, but he also loved music—he spent many evening hours listening to recordings of vocal artists and groups, he was our church choir director, and he sang in a barbershop quartet. My younger sister is also very musical, and she and I and my father loved to harmonize together.

What are you most grateful for?
I’m extremely grateful for my family—each member strives to make a difference and blesses the world and my life in their own compelling and unique way. I am also moved and grateful to be able to work with people who do what they do with kindness and respect because they make it so much easier to work through issues—especially the tough ones.

What do you envision as a perfect vacation?
My husband and I don’t do too much traveling these days, but I’ve always enjoyed going to a place like the Berkshires where there are opportunities to view nature, art, music, and dance. That is what comes to mind, a place that is peaceful and relaxing, with nature and art and music, and enough time to reflect and give it all the attention it deserves.

Is there one human problem you would like to solve?

Having seen people come together in miraculous ways under the stress and duress of the pandemic, I would like to better understand and work to eliminate the boundaries that keep people from coming together to work as collaboratively and creatively in times of less urgency and crisis.

If you were having a dinner party, what five people living or dead would you invite?
Since March of 2020, anywhere from two to seven times a week, at seven o’clock in the morning, I’ve been zooming with members of the public health committee that was formed to provide advice and guidance to the university during the pandemic. I would like to have a dinner party and invite all of these amazing people—to thank them, to hear more about their non-COVID interests, and to see them in three dimensions.

What has helped you the most in developing as a leader?  
I have been helped immeasurably by the opportunities that people have provided for me to stretch beyond my previous, familiar experiences and develop new skills and perspectives. When I say “people,” I certainly include the inspirational leaders I have worked for, who have engaged and supported me in endeavors that my medical training never prepared me for.  I also include the faculty and staff colleagues, students, and patients who have given generously of their time and shared their varied perspectives to deepen my knowledge and enrich my understanding of so many issues of importance to the university and to the lives of the members of our campus community.

What are some childhood memories?
There are so many–certainly singing with my father and my sister, vacationing at the Jersey shore where my maternal grandparents lived, going to church where my paternal grandparents taught Sunday school. I also remember running through the chocolate factory at the close of the school day with my friends to get the free chocolate bar at the end of the tour– those were the days when you could tour the actual factory.  And I have very fond memories of my mother, who was a nurse, and at one point, the school nurse in our school system. She was always reading and frequently took night courses at a local college and was a great role model for continuous learning and staying open to new opportunities.

What was the first time when….?
One first-time realization occurred when I came to work at Yale Health in 1986, first as the chief of Obstetrics and Gynecology and later as the director.  What I discovered there was a holistic, integrated way to deliver health care with all specialties and services provided and coordinated under one “roof”—this was a very unusual model at the time and a very exciting way to tend to the health of individual patients and the entire Yale community.

What would you say to your 12-year-old self if you had the chance to meet her?
You have no idea what opportunities lie ahead—look out for them and dive in.