Kathryn Rowland, MD, MPHS, received the 2026 American Pediatric Surgical Association (APSA) Foundation Education Grant for her proposal titled Exploring Well-Being, Autonomy, and Educational Experiences in Pediatric Surgery Fellowship: A Comprehensive Longitudinal Survey Study. The APSA Foundation Education Grant recognizes projects that advance educational scholarship and enhance pediatric surgical training and education.
Rowland’s project aims to strengthen pediatric surgery fellowship training quality and enhance fellow well-being.
“Pediatric surgery fellowship is the final formative stage in training pediatric surgeons, shaping not only clinical competence but also professional identity, well-being, and readiness for independent practice. Yet despite its central importance, there is limited national, longitudinal data describing how fellows experience their training or how educational and structural factors influence learning, support, and sustainability within the pediatric surgical workforce,” said Rowland. “As pediatric surgery continues to evolve amid increasing clinical complexity and heightened attention to trainee well-being, there is a critical need for coordinated, data-driven approaches that support high-quality education while fostering a healthy, resilient community of pediatric surgeons.”
Rowland’s work will establish a national, longitudinal framework to assess pediatric surgery fellowship experiences and to translate these findings into actionable insights that inform programmatic improvement and national discourse.
Rowland serves as director of the Center for Humanism and Ethics in Surgical Specialties (CHESS) and director of the pediatric surgery fellowship program at WashU Medicine. A pediatric surgeon, educator and surgical ethicist, she is dedicated to improving surgical education and supporting the professional development of trainees and early-career surgeons. Her research and mentorship efforts focus on ethics, professionalism, well-being, and the educational experiences of surgical learners. She also provides specialized clinical care for infants, children and adolescents requiring pediatric surgical treatment.
The APSA Foundation is the philanthropic partner of the American Pediatric Surgical Association, supporting pediatric surgical innovation, discovery, surgeon-scientist career development and member education. The education grant was established to fund educational projects that promote scholarship in pediatric surgery and explore opportunities to enhance training, knowledge and skills development for pediatric surgeons, trainees and advanced practice providers. Rowland’s study will examine well-being, autonomy and educational experiences throughout pediatric surgery fellowship training, generating insights that may help strengthen learning environments and support the next generation of pediatric surgeons.