Three Cheltenham grads seeing professional success: Dr. Jason Damsker (’89), Rachel Sachs (’05), Dr. Ashley Harvard (’08)

Local historian Chuck Langerman has highlighted the current professional statuses of three Cheltenham alumni:

Dr. Jason Damsker

Dr. Damsker, a 1989 graduate, was hired by Fox Chase Cancer Center as a Professor in the Department of Hematology/Oncology.

Dr. Damsker is board-certified in medical oncology, hematology, and internal medicine. He earned bachelor’s degrees in chemistry and classical studies from Cornell University, then received his medical degree from Hahnemann University School of Medicine, now Drexel University College of Medicine. He also completed an internal medicine residency at Temple University Hospital and a fellowship in hematology/oncology at Fox Chase.

Prior to joining Fox Chase, Dr. Damsker dedicated over 20 years to caring for patients in private practice. As an attending hematologist/oncologist for Abington Hematology Oncology Associates, he has diagnosed and treated every type of cancer.

His mother Ruth (Singer) Damsker graduated from Cheltenham High in 1963 and his sister, Rebecca Damsker Gigliotti, is a 1998 graduate. His younger brother, Dr. David Damsker, is a 1992 graduate and twin brother Dr. Keith Damsker graduated in 1989.

Rachel Sachs

Sachs, a 2005 graduate and Washington University Law professor, was appointed to the Illinois Advisory Council on Financing and Access to Sickle Cell Disease Treatment and Other High-Cost Drugs and Treatment.

Professor Sachs recently served in the Biden-Harris Administration as a Senior Advisor at the Department of Health and Human Services Office of the General Counsel, Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services Division. The Elkins Park native concentrates her research at the intersection of patient law and health law, with a particular focus on problems of innovation in and access to health care technologies.

Sachs holds a B.A. from Princeton University, a JD from Harvard Law School, and a MPH from the Harvard University T.H. Chan School of Public Health.

Dr. Ashley Harvard

Dr. Ashley Harvard, a 2008 graduate, is a Philadelphia-area medical doctor specializing in Obstetrics and Gynecology.

Dr. Harvard earned her medical degree from the Drexel University College of Medicine in Philadelphia and then completed her residency in Obstetrics and Gynecology at Temple University Hospital.

At Cheltenham High, the Elkins Park native was a national semifinalist in the 2008 National Achievement Scholarship program, an academic competition for African-American high school students.

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