Meet our Diabetes Team

Our multidisciplinary team of physicians, nurses, educators and staff works to provide treatment, care and education that empower our patients to effectively manage their diabetes for a lifetime. Our approach distinguishes us as a globally renowned research hub and a treatment center of choice. 

Our Physicians Our Clinic Kovler Leadership

Kovler Diabetes Center encompasses research, patient care, professional training and patient education. We empower our patients through treatment, education and specialist access. Evidence is the foundation of our treatment protocol. We focus on applied research to enhance patient care. Our team of specialists and educators addresses the full range of patient needs, from the physical to the social and emotional.

Our Clinic

The Kovler Diabetes Center is home to a wide range of diabetes experts. We work together to provide you with comprehensive and outstanding care. 

Clinic Staff

Our clinic staff will be with you throughout your journey at our center. They perform a variety of vital tasks and bring decades of experience and knowledge to the table.

Diabetes Education

The Kovler Diabetes Center certified education team is led by Amy Hess-Fischl MS, RD, LDN, BC-ADM, CDCES and offers many teaching and training opportunities for patients and healthcare professionals of all ages.

Health and Wellness Team

Led by our Director of Health & Wellness Program, Tina Drossos, PhD, this team meets with children, adolescents, and adults to encourage healthy adjustment, reduce distress and address barriers to self-management of diabetes. 

Clinical Research Team

Our researchers work in a number of disciplines and take a collaborative approach while pursuing key research that aims to enhance the health and lives of patients with diabetes.

Learn more about research

Kovler Diabetes Center Leadership

Since 2006, the Kovler Diabetes Center has been led by Director, Louis Philipson, MD, PhD, FACP and Executive Director, Peggy Hasenauer, MS, RN alongside Assistant Directors, Siri Atma Greeley, MD, PhD; Rochelle Naylor, MD; and Celeste Thomas; MD. The Kovler Diabetes Center builds on the University of Chicago’s rich history of diabetes care and discovery.

Established in January 2011, our Kovler Leadership Board of volunteers and philanthropists share a passion for Kovler and supporting those facing the challenges of diabetes.

Board members help Kovler and the University of Chicago Medicine identify unique opportunities to make an impact on diabetes care and innovation in Chicago and around the world. At its core, the Kovler Leadership Board serves as a fundraising and advocacy group committed to furthering the Center’s mission of advancing research and providing superior care for individuals with Type 1, Type 2 and genetic forms of diabetes across their lifespan.

Sally Kovler: Kovler Diabetes Founding Board Chair 

Sally Meyers Kovler has been active in the Chicago nonprofit community since 1986. She is a life member and former chair of the board of trustees of the Museum of Contemporary Art in Chicago. The Kovlers are a founding family of the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum and as a longtime supporter, Sally is engaged in a variety of capacities with the organization. She previously served on the boards of the Lynn Sage Cancer Research Foundation and the Chicago Foundation for Women. Sally earned her bachelor’s degree and master’s degree in speech pathology from Temple University in Philadelphia, and previously worked as an art consultant on the East Coast before moving to Chicago. 

Since 1992 Sally has been married to Jonathan Kovler, a University of Chicago Laboratory Schools graduate. Jon, a private investor who also runs a family foundation, is a life member of the Visiting Committee to the Division of the Biological Sciences and the Pritzker School of Medicine. In addition to their generous support of the Kovler Diabetes Center, the Kovler family has also funded:

• The Kovler Gymnasium at the Laboratory Schools 
• The Marjorie B. Kovler Viral Oncology Laboratories, named for Jonathan’s mother in 1973 
• The Marjorie Kovler Visiting Fellow program, named for Jonathan’s mother 
• The Everett Kovler Café in the Charles M. Harper Center, named in honor of Jonathan’s father in 2005