Tina Cheng Receives Prestigious George Armstrong Award

Research By: Tina Cheng, MD, MPH

Post Date: April 26, 2026 | Publish Date:

advocacy

Chief Medical Officer and Chair of Pediatrics recognized by Academic Pediatric Association for her commitment to improving child health

Tina Cheng, MD, MPH, a nationally recognized leader in pediatric health and health equity at Cincinnati Children’s, has been honored with the George Armstrong Award from the Academic Pediatric Association (APA), one of the organization’s highest distinctions. The award was presented during the Pediatric Academic Societies’ annual meeting held this past weekend in Boston.

Established to recognize outstanding contributions to academic pediatrics, the George Armstrong Award commemorates the legacy of the 18th-century physician who founded a dispensary for impoverished children in London—an early model of community-based pediatric care. The award celebrates individuals whose work reflects Armstrong’s enduring commitment to improving the health and well-being of children, particularly those most vulnerable.

Cheng served as the APA’s president-elect, president and past president from 2007 to 2010. She is one of five former APA presidents chosen for this honor by Arvin Garg, MD, MPH, current APA president; awardees included Danielle Laraque-Arena, MD; Claibourne Dungy, MD, MPH; David M. Jaffe, MD; and Katherine Lobach, MD, FAAP.

“Each awardee is not only an exceptional leader but also a trailblazer, being the first in the APA to reach its highest leadership position based on their gender, race/ethnicity, and/or sexual orientation,” notes Garg in the meeting session description. “These Awardees represent the very best of the APA and serve as inspirational role models for those who encounter similar barriers in pursuing their professional aspirations.”

Although Cheng, the BK Rachford Professor and chair of Pediatrics, director of Cincinnati Children’s Research Foundation, and Chief Medical Officer of Cincinnati Children’s, was unable to attend the meeting in person, she shared a recorded acceptance speech that reflected on her career, the mission of academic pediatrics, and the urgent need to prioritize child health in today’s complex landscape (watch the video above).

“It is a distinct honor to receive this award with my esteemed colleagues,” she said. “Nothing is more important than ensuring children grow up in a world where they can flourish and are on their optimal trajectory to productive adulthood. The future starts with children.”

In her comments, Cheng emphasized the continued importance of addressing child health disparities and advancing policies that support children and families. She reflected on her time as APA president, highlighting initiatives focused on disparities research and preserving the field’s institutional knowledge through oral histories of pediatric leaders.

Cheng also underscored the need for what she described as “the wisdom, the will and the wallet” — a framework calling for evidence-based strategies, collective commitment and sustained investment in child health. She pointed to recent national efforts, including a major National Academies report she co-led with James Perrin, MD, Harvard Medical School, focused on improving lifelong health outcomes, as examples of the field’s growing knowledge base—and the need to translate that knowledge into action.

Her speech also called for a broader societal shift toward prioritizing children in policymaking, including integrating child health and health equity considerations into all policies and increasing national investment in children’s well-being.

She closed her remarks on a hopeful note, highlighting the next generation of leaders as a source of optimism. Drawing on a global survey of young leaders, she noted that empathy and moral clarity are emerging as essential leadership qualities for the future.

“We need a world guided by a moral compass and empathy,” she said. “Our future is bright with our next generation of leadership.”

Cheng’s recognition with the George Armstrong Award reflects her career-spanning commitment to advancing child health through research, policy and advocacy—work that continues to shape the field of academic pediatrics and improve outcomes for children everywhere.

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advocacy

Research By

Tina Cheng, MD, MPH

Director, Cincinnati Children’s Research Foundation

As a child advocate, I have promoted the importance of pediatric research including initiation of the “7 Great Achievements in Pediatric Research” campaign (Pediatr Res. 2016;80(3):330-7) and have published on the “Next 7 Great Achievements in Pediatric Research” (Pediatrics. 2017;139(5):e20163803).

tina.cheng@cchmc.org