Pediatric Residency
Welcome to Our Pediatric Family’s Page
The Pediatric Residency program at Children's Hospital of New Jersey at Newark Beth Israel Medical Center provides a well-balanced educational experience and a solid foundation in general pediatrics and clinical experiences in every pediatric subspecialty. We focus on delivering care in a highly reliable organization with an eye on patient safety and quality improvement. Furthermore, we advocate on behalf of all children, especially those of vulnerable populations to reduce health care disparities and welcome learners of all communities. Finally, we actively support the well-being of our learners so they can move to the next step of their journey resilient and engaged.
By offering residents exposure to patients of all socioeconomic backgrounds, providing them with both practical and academic training and balancing supervision with independence, we have been highly successful in educating the pediatricians of tomorrow and preparing them to enter any area of pediatrics they desire.
Graduates of the program have gone on to succeed in general pediatrics and subspecialty pediatrics, in the arenas of public health, private practice and academics. In addition to producing empathic and clinically competent pediatricians, the Program at CHNJ desires to address the rising trend in physician burnout with an evolving wellness program for the housestaff.
We look forward to your application this fall!
-
Program Leadership
Jon Sicat, DO
Program Director, Pediatric Residency
Dr. Sicat has a long standing history of being a residency program director for ~20 years. Along with the directorship for the Pediatric residency program, he is also the Associate Program Director for the combined Internal Medicine-Pediatric residency. He has been on the medical staff at Newark Beth Israel Medical Center since 2000 after completing his Med-Peds training at Newark Beth Israel Medical Center. He graduated from New York Institute of Technology-College of Osteopathic Medicine after his undergraduate training in Biochemistry at New York University.
Dr. Sicat has professional interests in transition medicine caring for both children and adults with special health care needs. He often utilizes techniques learned from the faculty development fellowship he completed at Michigan State University in his medical education career. In his spare time he plays the piano and edits video in-between driving his medium sized children around and roaming the aisles at Costco.
Rowan F. Walsh, MD
Interim Chair of Pediatrics
Dr. Rowan Walsh is a Board Certified Pediatric Cardiologist and Director of Pediatric Cardiac Imaging at Children’s Heart Center at Children’s Hospital of New Jersey at Newark Beth Israel Medical Center who joined the medical staff in 2007. He is a graduate of University College Cork in Ireland. Following a research fellowship at the Children’s Hospital of New York, he then completed his Pediatric Residency at Westchester Medical Center and a Pediatric Cardiology Fellowship at Long Island Jewish Medical Center. Dr Walsh pursued additional training in Cardiac MRI at Children’s Hospital Boston. His clinical interests include diagnosis and management of children with complex heart disease.
Sarah F. Berman, DO
Associate Program Director
Dr. Berman is an attending neonatologist at Children’s Hospital of New Jersey at Newark Beth Israel Medical Center and clinical assistant professor at Rutgers New Jersey Medical School. She is board certified in neonatal-perinatal medicine and general pediatrics and is a Fellow of the American Academy of Pediatrics. She completed her pediatric internship and residency at NYU Grossman Long Island School of Medicine and her fellowship in Neonatal-Perinatal medicine at New York University Grossman School of Medicine. Her clinical interests include neonatal nutrition, hypoxic ischemic encephalopathy, and neonatal resuscitation.
Marla Guzman, MD
Associate Program Director
Dr. Guzman is a board certified pediatric rheumatologist. She completed her pediatrics residency at Goryeb Children’s Hospital in Morristown, NJ and her pediatric rheumatology fellowship at Cohen Children’s Medical Center in Long Island, NY. Her clinical interests include lupus, quality of life in children with rheumatic disease, and medical education.
Khalil W. Savary, MD
Associate Program Director
Dr. Khalil Savary has been interested in pediatric pulmonology, specifically pediatric asthma, since college. He is particularly interested in helping bridge medical teaching and practical treatment options with patients, families, and the medical system. His research focus has been on predictors of asthma, often where it disproportionately affects communities. He has added to his focus involvement as a community advocate, now engaging with local leaders and organizations to help address environmental risk factors from climate change to pollution and air quality. He believes the key to patient care is a partnership between the patient and physician, which he strives to deliver. Dr. Savary is an associate professor at NJMS , currently operating 2 practice locations- One at University Hospital and one at Newark Beth Israel. He has been part of the Rutgers- NJMS family since 2017. He is an assistant program director for the pediatric residency, a faculty advisor for the medical students for environmental health group, and a core member of the undergraduate medical school education at NJMS.
Ebonni S. Shaw
Program Coordinator
973-926-2676
Since beginning her employment at Newark Beth Israel in October 2004, Ms. Shaw joined the Graduate Medical Education in February 2017. Ms. Shaw has built a reputation for excellence, organization, and an unwavering commitment to supporting trainees and faculty alike. She first coordinated several high-acuity subspecialty fellowship programs—Pulmonary and Critical Care, Infectious Disease, Hematology and Oncology, and Nephrology—where she refined her expertise in accreditation, program management, and academic operations.
In 2023, Ms. Shaw transitioned into her current role as Pediatric Residency Coordinator, where she continues to bring structure, strategy, and heart to every aspect of program administration. Known for her professionalism, wit, and poise, she is deeply valued for her ability to balance institutional demands with the human side of medical education.
Ms. Shaw holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Business Administration with a concentration in Business Management from Bloomfield College in Bloomfield, New Jersey. Her business foundation complements her administrative expertise, enabling her to approach challenges with both analytical precision and empathetic leadership.
-
2025-2026 Pediatric Chiefs
Fariba Abedi, MD (CHoNJ, Chief Resident)
Kyle Prisby, MD (CHoNJ, Chief Resident)
Mirra Said, MD (CHoNJ, Chief Resident)
Suman Dhakal, MD (CHoNJ, Chief Resident)
Isaac Snyder, DO (UH, PGY-4 Chief Resident)
For any questions, please do not hesitate to contact us at 973-926-7471.
Residency and fellowship programs training at RWJBarnabas Health benefit from the resources and interprofessional opportunities available through the Rutgers Health institutional sponsorship. Learn more about all of the Rutgers Health sponsored graduate medical education programs on our sponsoring institution webpage.