FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                                                                   

For more information, contact:

The University of Tennessee Health Science Center

Communications & Marketing

Sheila Champlin – (901) 448-4957, schampli@uthsc.edu or

Dena Owens – (901) 448-4957, dowens10@uthsc.edu

 

Five Finalists Selected in Search for Executive Dean, College of Medicine, at

The University of Tennessee Health Science Center

________________________________________________________________

Memphis, Tenn. (January 24, 2011) – The search committee charged with finding top candidates for the position as executive dean for the College of Medicine at the University of Tennessee Health Science Center (UTHSC) has selected five finalists.  Over the next few weeks, each of the finalists will visit the main UTHSC campus in Memphis for interviews.

The finalists are:

·         John C. Baldwin, MD, Advisor for Health Affairs and Professor of Surgery, Texas Tech University;

·         David Bjorkman, MD, MSPH, Dean, School of Medicine, University of Utah;

·         Donald DiPette, MD, Vice President for Medical Affairs and Health Sciences and Distinguished Professor, University of South Carolina;

·         Joseph Flaherty, MD, Dean, College of Medicine, University of Illinois;

·         David Stern, MD, Dean, College of Medicine and Vice President for Health Affairs, University of Cincinnati.

The 18-member search committee selected the finalists earlier this month.  Co-chaired by Kennard Brown, JD, MPA, PhD, executive vice chancellor and chief operations officer at UTHSC, and Timothy Fabian, MD, Harwell Wilson Alumni Professor and chairman in the Department of Surgery at UTHSC, the committee represents a broad-based group of faculty and UTHSC hospital partners.

“As a committee, our mission is to recommend to Chancellor Steve Schwab a list of proven leaders who will aggressively promote the continued success of the College of Medicine’s academic programs, research initiatives and national reputation of excellence,” Dr. Brown said.

            “We are pleased with the initial, diverse pool of applicants we reviewed.  We think each of the five finalists is a well-qualified, capable leader and we look forward to hosting them on our campus,” he added.

Each finalist will take part in two full days of meetings in Memphis.  The campus visits will provide UTHSC administrators, faculty and staff a chance to familiarize themselves with each candidate, as well as give each candidate an opportunity to get acquainted with the main UTHSC campus.

The search for a new executive dean began in August 2010.  The search committee, with the assistance of Parker Executive Search, an Atlanta-based firm, considered 35 candidates.  Nine were chosen for a round of preliminary interviews earlier this month.  From that group, the five finalists were selected.  After the campus interviews, the committee will provide Chancellor Schwab with its evaluation of the candidates.

The executive dean for the UT College of Medicine is the chief academic and administrative officer responsible for the leadership and management of all three College of Medicine campus locations in Memphis, Chattanooga and Knoxville, as well as oversight of the college’s faculty practice plans.  The executive dean reports directly to the chancellor of UTHSC.  The UT College of Medicine is the largest of six health science colleges within the University of Tennessee Health Science Center.  Based in Memphis, Tenn., the executive dean will also serve as the dean for the UT College of Medicine, Memphis campus.

As the flagship statewide academic health system, the mission of the University of Tennessee Health Science Center is to bring the benefits of the health sciences to the achievement and maintenance of human health, with a focus on the citizens of Tennessee and the region, by pursuing an integrated program of education, research, clinical care, and public service.  In 2011, UT Health Science Center celebrates its centennial: 100 years advancing the future of health care.  Offering a broad range of postgraduate training opportunities, the main UTHSC campus is located in Memphis and includes six colleges: Allied Health Sciences, Dentistry, Graduate Health Sciences, Medicine, Nursing and Pharmacy.  The UTHSC campus in Knoxville includes a College of Medicine, College of Pharmacy, and an Allied Health Sciences unit.  In addition, the UTHSC Chattanooga campus includes a College of Medicine and an Allied Health Sciences unit.  Since its founding in 1911, UTHSC has educated and trained more than 53,000 health care professionals on campuses and in health care facilities across the state.  For more information, visit www.uthsc.edu.

###