News

We are delighted to honor Lori Zippay (Department of Psychiatry Academic Administrator), as she celebrates her thirty-year career anniversary at UPMC. So thoroughly entrenched in the Department, many longtime faculty members still refer to Lori using her maiden name, although she has been married for more than 20 years. By the same token, Lori can sometimes be heard to remark about a senior member of the faculty, “I remember when they were a resident!” Steady, strategic, and seemingly omniscient, Lori serves as a kind voice of reason for faculty and staff alike. 

“Lori has been, without question, indispensable to the multiple domains of success of our Department over the past three decades," said David Lewis, MD (Chair, Department of Psychiatry). “She is a wise advisor and compassionate counselor to our faculty members, an unfailing patriot in all things related to our Departmental mission, a creative thinker, and an innovative problem-solver. She holds deeply to a genuine faith that guides her concern for, and countless acts of kindness to, so many. I feel so fortunate to have her as partner and friend.”

Lori began her career in the Department of Psychiatry in 1991, and has served in her role under the leadership of two Department chairs. “When Lori joined the Department, Dr. Kupfer called me and said, ‘You have to meet this person—she will be an excellent partner for you to work with,’ and the way he talked her up, she sounded like a number-one draft pick! And I have to say, after all these years, he did call it right,” said Kenneth Nash, MD (Professor and Vice Chair for Clinical Affairs, Department of Psychiatry).

As Academic Administrator, Lori oversees a dizzying scope of Departmental operations. Her talents have shined particularly brightly in faculty career development, where she has guided Psychiatry faculty members through promotion or tenure, often serving informally as an advisor, soundboard, and occasionally, life coach. “We are so fortunate to have Lori in our department! We all benefit from her experience, competence, and knowledge,” said Daniel Buysse, MD (Professor of Psychiatry and Clinical and Translational Science). “But what makes Lori a real treasure is the kindness and concern she shows for everyone she works with.”

Since 2012, Lori has served as administrative lead on the Clinician-Educator Faculty Development Program (CEFDP), an innovative, career development program tailored specifically for assistant professor-level clinical faculty. Gina Perez, MD (Associate Professor of Psychiatry & CEFDP Program Director), said, “I’ve gotten to know Lori through her work with the CEFDP. I always enjoy my planning sessions with her because she’s incredibly organized, creative in her thinking, and cares tremendously about the program. And she’s simply wonderful to be around. Lori, thanks for making our work together not feel like work at all.”

“Lori’s commitment to stay the course with us for three decades reflects her outstanding characteristics. She has both curiosity and determination, which allow her to  approach each day as a positive challenge—an opportunity to learn new things, to encounter novel problems, and to meet interesting people,” said Paul Pilkonis, PhD (Professor of Psychiatry, Psychology, and Clinical and Translational Science). “Because of her curiosity, positivity, and problem-solving ability, she has been an invaluable ‘go-to’ person for the Department, and we are all grateful for her institutional commitment and memory. It’s been a pleasure for me personally to work with Lori on many projects during her tenure in the Department, and I can only hope that she’s still eager to continue in what has become an essential role.”