FLORENCE D. SHERMAN was born in Bridgeport, CT in 1926. After graduating high school, she furthered her education at St. Vincent’s Hospital School of Nursing in Bridgeport and worked there as a Registered Nurse. She later became a nurse manager for the Department of Radiology. Florence resided in Palm Beach, Florida for over 40 years with her husband, Dr. Irving J. Sherman. Florence passed peacefully on September 3, 2023.
Florence and her husband were generous benefactors to the Johns Hopkins Department of Neurosurgery and were instrumental in endowing several professorships and programs, helping Johns Hopkins clinicians and scientists learn new techniques and perform ground-breaking research. As lead donors in establishing the Henry Brem Professorship in Neurosurgery, Florence and Irving Sherman inspired others to further advance brain tumor research at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine through the power of philanthropy.
Throughout the decades, the Shermans have donated more than eight million dollars to the Johns Hopkins Department of Neurosurgery and helped fund seven endowed professorships and over 50 traveling scholars.
Recently, on behalf of her late husband, Dr. Irving Sherman, Florence established the Irving J. and Florence Sherman Professorship in Neurosurgery. Thanks to Florence’s philanthropy, Dr. Judy Huang became the first female neurosurgeon to earn an endowed chair in the 100+ year history of the Department of Neurosurgery at Johns Hopkins Medicine.
Today, the Sherman’s legacy continues to support the Johns Hopkins Department of Neurosurgery through the establishment of the Florence D. Sherman Rising Professorship in Neurosurgery by the estate of Florence D. Sherman. Designed to propel a junior faculty’s research and career, rising professorships provide essential support to the brightest talents in the field with research opportunities and continuous mentorship. The Shermans knew the importance of training the next generation of physicians at Johns Hopkins Medicine, and their leadership brings forth a paradigm shift. Through their support, Dr. Christopher Jackson will be able to begin critical research and apply for prestigious federal funding much earlier.
Dr. Irving J. and Florence D. Sherman created the Florence and Irving J. Sherman Charitable Trust for the benefit of Johns Hopkins Neurosurgery and Neurology, and it continues to honor their legacy to this day and well into the future.
Held by Christopher Jackson
CHRISTOPHER JACKSON, M.D., earned his medical degree from the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, where he also completed his neurosurgical residency. In 2020, Dr. Jackson joined the faculty at Johns Hopkins Neurosurgery as an Assistant Professor. Dr. Jackson specializes in brain tumors and cerebrovascular disorders, including vestibular schwannomas, gliomas, meningioma, trigeminal neuralgia, brain metastasis, arteriovenous malformations, and aneurysms.
His clinical practice focuses on treating patients with skull base tumors and cerebrovascular conditions. The goal of his laboratory is to harness the immune system to promote healing in brain diseases. Dr. Jackson’s approach is unique among neurosurgeon-scientists — rather than deconstruct the biology of a specific disease, Dr. Jackson believes in working from the foundation up. His philosophy is to first uncover the signals that determine the type, intensity, and duration of immune responses in the brain and target the diseases where these specific signals go awry. Dr. Jackson has been recognized with many awards of distinction including the Frank L. Coulson Jr. Award for Clinical Excellence, the Irving J. Sherman Award for Resident Achievement, the Harvey Cushing Hunterian Research Award, and the American Brain Tumor Association Young Investigator Award. His work has been funded by the Brain Aneurysm Foundation and the Goldhirsh-Yellin Foundation. Dr. Jackson is certified by the American Board of Neurological Surgery.
Dr. Jackson has published over 60 peer-reviewed articles and is extensively involved in multidisciplinary care of his patients with colleagues in oncology and otolaryngology. To better understand the biology of vestibular schwannomas, Dr. Jackson started Johns Hopkins Medicine’s first biobank of vestibular schwannoma tissues.
Dr. Jackson is also invested in training neurosurgical residents on the principles of microsurgery and open skull base approaches. Most of this training occurs daily in the operating room, but he also leads resident teaching conferences, teaches residents at bi-annual Johns Hopkins-University of Maryland joint cadaver labs, and guides residents through a hands-on microsurgical training course. Dr. Jackson also frequently teaches the principles of brain tumor immunology and basic laboratory techniques to undergraduate, postbaccalaureate, and graduate students in his laboratory.
As an emerging physician, researcher, and a leader in the department of neurosurgery, Dr. Jackson is paving the way for ground-breaking discoveries at Johns Hopkins Medicine.
FLORENCE D. SHERMAN was born in Bridgeport, CT in 1926. After graduating high school, she furthered her education at St. Vincent’s Hospital School of Nursing in Bridgeport and worked there as a Registered Nurse. She later became a nurse manager for the Department of Radiology. Florence resided in Palm Beach, Florida for over 40 years with her husband, Dr. Irving J. Sherman. Florence passed peacefully on September 3, 2023.