Kellie Sprague ‘86 | Biology major
[Saint Anselm] taught me not only the importance of knowledge and pursuit of excellence but also the deeper responsibility of compassion, integrity, and service to others—values that guide me every day.
As a young girl growing up in the 1970s in Downeast Maine, Kellie Sprague ’86 dreamed of becoming a doctor. Today, she is nationally recognized as one of America’s Top Doctors by U.S. News & World Report and Boston Magazine. Her clinical excellence and devotion to her patients have made a profound impact on countless lives. Her philosophy of care—centered on education, guidance, and support—reflects the Benedictine values of compassion and respect for the dignity of every person. For her exceptional contributions to healthcare, medical research, and patient-centered care, Sprague earned the 2025 Nursing and Health Sciences Alumni Award.
Sprague first learned about Saint Anselm College after her high school science teacher and fellow Anselmian David Irving ’68 first suggested she apply. She asked him where it was, shocked that it wasn’t in Maine. He told her he thought she would like it there and do well. He ended up being correct, and the four years Sprague spent at Saint Anselm were truly formative.
As a Saint Anselm undergraduate, Sprague looked up tothe late Professor Barbara Stahl, her pre-med advisor, for her guidance and belief in her as a student. “When [Professor Stahl] asked me to serve as one of her teaching assistants in the anatomy lab, I realized she was pushing me to grow,” she says.
After studying medicine and graduating from the University of Vermont, Sprague completed a residency and fellowship training in hematology-oncology at Tufts Medical Center in Boston. She would then go on to spend nearly 30 years at Tufts teaching medical students, residents, and fellows. Sprague was involved in more than 100 clinical trials at Tufts, where she explored new treatments for patients with blood cancers. Over time, she advanced from trainee to director of the Adult Leukemia Program and director of the Bone Marrow and Stem Cell Therapy Program.
As a member of the Medical School Admissions Committee, Sprague took great pride in advocating for students whose paths resembled her own.
Today, Sprague is back in Maine, dedicating the final phase of her career to building a state-of-the-art blood cancer program for the people of her home state. At Maine Medical Center, there is now a thriving leukemia service that hosts students and residents on rotation. Sprague’s group has also established the first hematology-oncology fellowship training program in Maine, with their inaugural fellows graduating in June 2026. She continues to teach for the Tufts University School of Medicine’s Maine Track Hematology course.
“While my accomplishments have brought me great meaning and purpose, it is still my time with patients that brings me the greatest joy,” she shares. “I feel deeply blessed to do what I do every day.” Over the course of her career, Sprague has felt most supported by her husband, Stephen Nishiyama; her sister, Kriste; and her parents, Kenneth and Karen, who still live in Downeast Maine. She feels her parents’ professions (in blue-collar roles and healthcare) taught her the value of hard work and the importance of never giving up on your dreams.
Earning the 2025 Nursing and Health Sciences Award is a deeply humbling honor for Sprague. She believes the education, values, and community she experienced at Saint Anselm laid the foundation for the work she does today as a hematologist-oncologist, clinical researcher, and medical educator.
“The College taught me not only the importance of knowledge and pursuit of excellence but also the deeper responsibility of compassion, integrity, and service to others—values that guide me every day,” says Sprague. “This recognition reflects the countless teachers, mentors, colleagues, and family who supported me, believed in me, and inspired me along the way. It is a reminder that medicine is as much about human connection as it is about science and technology, and that every patient encounter carries forward the lessons I learned on the Hilltop.”
Adapted from Kellie Sprague’s Alumni Award acceptance speech and 2025 Alumni Award citations.