Andrea Cammack

Posted in Staff Spotlight

February 9, 2022

Name

Andrea Pastierová Cammack

Title

Program manager of the Family Medicine Department’s Medical Student Education Division, staff representative on the Racial Justice Curriculum Reform Subcommittee of the Racial Justice Committee for Change

How long have you worked at GUMC?

18 years

What led you to your position here at GUMC?

Before relocating to the United States, I was a teacher of English as a foreign language in my native Slovakia and also in Russia. I worked at Columbia University’s School of the Arts before we moved to DC. I was a Hoya temp in CAPS for a few months. Then I applied for the position of educational coordinator in the Family Medicine department and got hired on April 7, 2004 — that’s my lucky number.

In your role, how do you interact with the GUMC community?

Over the years, my interaction has changed depending on the type of courses I’ve coordinated. I interact with medical students, faculty and staff at the School of Medicine and Dahlgren Memorial Library. Recently, I joined the team of preclinical advisors and the Racial Justice Curriculum Reform Subcommittee.

What do you enjoy most about your job?

Instructional design. Working with faculty and staff on designing learning opportunities for medical students and exploring new educational technologies and pedagogical practices.

What is a skill you have that might surprise people?

Sewing and knitting. Growing up in Czechoslovakia, I used to make clothes for myself, my family and friends, and for sale. Reupholstering two sleeper sofas was a fun project.

What did you learn about yourself as a professional during the pandemic?

That I was capable of juggling the pandemic needs of one full-time job, one part-time graduate program, one husband, and ​​two teenagers.

What do you like to do in your free time?

Reading, watching movies and going for DC neighborhood walks (especially during the pandemic), swimming, skiing and traveling with my husband and kids, and visiting my family in Slovakia, so I do not forget my roots.

What is your greatest achievement (personal or professional)?

Raising kids in a country I did not grow up in.

What is the best lesson you have learned from working at GUMC?

How resilient the GUMC community is, and that patience is a virtue.