JESSICA DAVIS

DAVIS--Jessica G., age 91, died at home on February 19, 2026. The Brooklyn native graduated from Wellesley College and followed her father, Nathan Grosof, into medicine. After earning her medical degree from Columbia University, she became a pioneering pediatric geneticist. A compassionate clinician for her patients with rare genetic disorders and a skilled and caring teacher who enjoyed collaborating with colleagues, she served as a tireless mentor to women scientists while working at Albert Einstein College of Medicine Hospital, North Shore University Hospital, and Weill Cornell Hospital. She helped develop the first Masters level genetic counseling program at Sarah Lawrence College in 1969 and was instrumental in the creation of the American College of Medical Genetics and Genomics. After Cornell founded its campus in Qatar, she brought her human genetics curriculum to the Middle East. Among many honors over her nearly 60-year career: the 2013 Award for Excellence in Human Genetics Education from the American Society of Human Genetics and the Antoine Marfan Award from the National Marfan Foundation in 2005. An avid reader (mysteries were a personal favorite) and movie-goer, the longtime Upper Westsider relished quiet weekends at the family's upstate property, where she enjoyed bird-watching and walking her dog Asa. She is survived by children Jennifer Hall and David Davis (Flora Ito); grandchildren Delaney Hall (Ryan Keisler), Chloe Hall- Fournier (Jake Fournier) and Gavin Hall (Alexandra Aparicio); and great-grandchildren Fiona, Eleanor and George Keisler and Santiago Aparicio Hall. She was predeceased by her husband Andrew P. Davis, daughter Margot Davis, and sister Myra Cooper.