Jared Baeten, MD, PhD, current Vice Chair of the Department of Global Health, has accepted the position of Director of the University of Washington/Fred Hutch Center for AIDS Research (CFAR) starting January 1, 2017. After 30 years as CFAR Director, King Holmes will transition to a Co-Director role and will remain an active member of the CFAR Leadership Team.

Jared is an internationally-recognized HIV/AIDS researcher with a long track record of independent research and high-impact publications in the field. His research focuses on the prevention of HIV and other sexually transmitted diseases, including clinical trials of novel prevention interventions, epidemiologic studies of risk factors for HIV transmission, and biobehavioral and implementation science research aimed at optimizing effective prevention of HIV. He led the Partners PrEP Study and the ASPIRE study, randomized clinical trials that proved the efficacy of tenofovir-based pills and of the dapivirine vaginal ring as pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) against HIV acquisition. Recently, his work has evolved to focus on how to achieve HIV prevention at scale, using operational research methods and behavioral science to understand how better to deliver effective prevention tools such as PrEP, antiretroviral treatment, and HIV testing. Additional work has explored whether use of hormonal contraception is a risk factor for HIV.

A hallmark of Jared’s work is interdisciplinary science – including collaborative laboratory discovery science, clinical epidemiology, intensive behavioral and social science, sexual and reproductive health, mathematical modeling, and implementation science. He has been deeply engaged in education, training, and mentoring of the next generation of public health leaders, in Seattle and through his extensive collaborations in Africa. 

Jared has previously received a CFAR New Investigator Award and Emerging Opportunity Grant, utilized CFAR Cores as a CFAR member, and has collaborated closely with many CFAR investigators. In his various roles within the University, he has demonstrated excellent leadership, management, and strategic planning skills, as well as collaborative and interdisciplinary skills.