Dr. Christopher Renjilian ’05, a doctor with more than a decade of experience in supporting health, development and resilience of young people, was selected as an associate vice-president of William & Mary for health and well-being.
A former committed student of William & Mary, Renjilian, is currently medical director of the Lawrenceville school, an independent boarding school internationally recognized in New Jersey. In this role, he oversees the school health and well-being center, works with other leaders to implement the school’s strategic plan for community well-being and oversees medical teams, nurses, advice and sports medicine / sports training.
At William & Mary, he will provide leadership and university surveillance Health and well-being The departments, including the Student Health Center, Counselling Center, recreational campus, health promotion and the Center for Mindfulness & Authentic Excellence. He will also work with campus leaders to meet the health and well-being needs of the student organization, to provide advice on health care laws and policies and manage student health insurance contracts, among other functions.
“I am honored to accept the impressive responsibility to advance William & Mary’s vision for integrative health and well-being,” he said. “I am delighted to contribute to the health and well-being of new generations of students William & Mary when I got home.”
Renjilian, who will start in William & Mary on August 10, will fall directly from Ginger Ambler, vice-president of student affairs and public security. He succeeds Kelly Cracce, who worked at university for almost three decades and considerably widened health and well-being offers for students. Linda Knight, executive director of health and well-being and director of campus leisure, fulfilled the role as an temporary basis during national research.
“I am delighted to welcome Dr. Renjilian at William & Mary to serve our community as AP for health and well-being,” said Ambler. “As a doctor, Chris brings a width of perspectives, specializing in both teenage and sporting medicine. The line of the line of his work of his life is to promote the holistic well-being of young people. It is clear that his approach to well-being is entirely consistent with our integrative approach to the provocation of human development in William & Mary.
“I deeply admire the lively intellect and the compassionate heart that it brings to this important work. Dr Renjilian is the ideal person to advance our community in our common commitment to well-being. ”
Cultivate resilience and development
Renjilian is certified by the board of directors in pediatrics, and he holds suspeal certifications in adolescent medicine and sports medicine. His career focused on adoption “of an integrated and applied approach to cultivate resilience and fulfillment among young people,” he said.
“I am very happy that Dr Renjilian joins the health and well-being team,” said Anne Ryan Gareis ’25, member of the research committee. “In addition to his impressive medical expertise, he is kind and really determined to help all students discover their well-being. He doesn’t only know how to teach these skills, but he models well-being by his way of being in the world. I know that he will connect with the students and will help develop well-being through the campus. ”
After obtaining his Beta Kappa government diploma from William & Mary in 2005, Renjilian obtained a master’s degree in bioethics and a doctorate in medicine from the University of Pennsylvania in 2011. He continued a pediatric residence at the Philadelphia children’s hospital, followed by scholarships in sports medicine and teenage medicine in the same hospital.
From 2018 to 2023, he was a deputy professor of clinical pediatrics at the school of medicine and professors at the University of Pennsylvania and teachers who frequent the children’s hospital in Philadelphia, where he occupied clinical, teaching and leadership responsibilities. During his best classified hospital stay, he acquired precious experience in approaches based on clinical care systems, patient safety and continuous quality improvement. During his stay, he developed “stronger than ever”, a clinical initiative that incorporated the principles of resilience and the widening care for patients with significant sports injuries to include nutrition and mental health.
He took his current post with the Lawrenceville school in 2023. Since the start of the school, Renjilian has been able to advance the effectiveness of his clinical care, the integration of health services and his culture of well-being.
In addition to its clinical and leadership success, Renjilian is a recognized scholar, which has given conferences and published largely. His research has focused on understanding how significant interpersonal connections and mentoring as well as exercise and physical form can promote resilience and protect young people from toxic stress. His work appeared in medical and research publications, as well as a number of books, and he appeared on several podcasts. He contributed as an assistant author and publisher to “reach adolescents”, the American Academy of Pediatrics toolbox for professionals in order to develop a resilience focused in their practices.
“The appointment of Dr. Chris Renjilian is absolutely exciting not only because of the important research he has carried out on the health and well-being of adolescents and post-adolescents, but also because of his deep ties with William & Mary,” said associate professor and director of Hispanic studies John Riofrio, who sat on the research committee. “In many ways, it’s a return for him and us.”
Renjilian says he first acquired an appreciation of the kind of work he now does as the first cycle at William & Mary.
As a university student, he was a member of the male gymnastics team and was recognized several times as an academic All-American. In addition, he was elected member of the student government and was assistant president, peer educator for the prevention of sexual assault and president of the Cercle ETA of Omicron Delta Kappa National Leadership Honor Society.
“The personal growth I have known as a student at William & Mary was explosive and wonderful,” he said. “By observing my classmates and my teammates, I knew that I was not alone. The quality and extent of our growth have been made possible by the relationships, the environment and the sustainable values that belong to William & Mary.
“The university has since been based on its exceptional capacity to promote the development of young people through generational commitments and innovations remarkable in health and well-being.”
Riofrio said that the research process had confirmed its sense of “deep engagement of the university towards the values of health and well-being among students, but also, within the largest William & Mary community”.
“The candidates pool was exceptional with people who apply from all over the country and with a remarkable range of professional and personal backgrounds,” he said. “This speaks volumes about the growing national recognition of William & Mary as a national leader in health and well-being of the campus.”
Erin Jay,, Main associate director of new academics