Dr. Kurt Newman was named president and CEO of Children's National Medical Center in Washington.

Newman, 59, is scheduled to assume the role Sept. 1 and succeeds Edwin Zechman, who previously announced he planned to retire after 17 years in the position. Newman has worked at Children's National for 25 years, since 2004 as senior vice president for its center for surgical care, Children's National said in a news release.

“Dr. Newman has an ability to think big, but also maintains a down-to-earth, approachable nature, which really appealed to the search committee,” Andrew Blair, vice chairman of the hospital's board of directors, said in the release.