Ora Hirsch Pescovitz, M.D.
Rochester, MI 48309 • 248-370-3500 • pescovitz@oakland.edu
Dr. Pescovitz has more than 30 years of experience in health centers, industry and universities where she has been responsible for creative innovations, entrepreneurial discovery and strategic planning. She is a renowned pediatric endocrinologist and investigator who has published more than 190 papers and books. She is a sought-after speaker on a range of topics, including education, leadership, healthcare and women’s issues. She is an elected member of the National Academy of Medicine.
Ora is the president of Oakland University, a doctoral research institution with more than 16,000 graduate and undergraduate students. Since becoming president, she has increased student and academic success, scholarship and community engagement and has focused major efforts on diversity, equity, inclusion and sustainability. Under her leadership, the campus has grown, the entrepreneurial spirit and philanthropy have increased and reputation has been enhanced, as manifest by numerous regional and national awards.
Dr. Pescovitz earned her medical degree from Northwestern University’s Feinberg School of Medicine where she was awarded Distinguished Alumni Awards from both the Feinberg School of Medicine and Northwestern University. Her primary research has focused on the physiologic and molecular mechanisms responsible for disorders of growth and puberty, and the development of novel therapies for these conditions. She has received numerous awards for research, teaching, and leadership including being named a Distinguished Hoosier, a Sagamore of the Wabash by Indiana’s Governor; she was named one of Detroit Crain’s Newsmakers of the Year, Top 25 Women in Healthcare, the Distinguished Leadership award from the Endocrine Society, the Lifetime Achievement award from the Human Growth Foundation, Crain’s 100 Most Influential Women, Michigan Business Women Hall of Fame, the inaugural Flagstar Strand Theatre Strand Century Awardee and the 2023 Michiganian of the Year.
During her extensive 21-year career at Indiana University, she served as Executive Associate Dean for Research Affairs at the School of Medicine, President and CEO of Riley Hospital for Children, and interim Vice President for Research Administration at Indiana University.
From 2009-2014, she was the University of Michigan’s Executive Vice President for Medical Affairs and Health System CEO. In this role, she led a system that included three hospitals, more than 120 health centers and clinics, and the University of Michigan Medical School. She oversaw $3.3 billion in revenue and $490 million in research funding.
From 2014-2017, Dr. Pescovitz was Eli Lilly and Company’s Senior Vice President and U.S. Medical Leader for Lilly Biomedicines, where she was responsible for real world evidence-based research and relationships with large health systems.
Dr. Pescovitz served as president of the Society for Pediatric Research, the nation’s largest pediatric research organization; president of the North American Pediatric Endocrine Society, and chair of the March of Dimes Grants Review Committee. She also served on the University of Florida Health System Strategic Cabinet, Anthem-Lilly Joint Research Governance Council, and Advancement Council of the Indiana University Fairbanks School of Public Health. She also served on the boards of the Hormone Foundation, National Association of Children’s Hospitals and Related Institutions (NACHRI), Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals, National Institutes of Health (NIH) Advisory Board for Clinical Research and the Board of Life Technology (prior to its sale to Thermo Fisher).
Among others, Dr. Pescovitz currently serves on the Boards of Priority Health, the Detroit Economic Club, the Horizon League where she is Chair of the Board and she is a member of the NCAA Division I Board of Directors. She is the immediate past chair of the Michigan Association of State Universities, Co-Chair of the Detroit Drives Degrees Leadership Council, and MBX Biosciences, Inc. Board of Directors.
Her late husband, Dr. Mark Pescovitz, was a renowned transplant surgeon at Indiana University. She is a proud mother to three children, three in-law children, and eight grandchildren. Her partner, Dr. Daniel Walsh is a cardiologist at the Corewell Health System.