Vol. 46 | May 2025 – 9 minute read

Connecting the Dots: A Year of Departmental Visits

Over a 12-month period, institutional leaders visited all clinical and basic science departments, centers, and schools, providing an opportunity for in-person interactions with faculty members across campus.

The visits, which started in March 2024 in the Department of Pharmacology and concluded in March 2025 in the Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, were scheduled in response to input from the StandPoint Faculty Engagement Survey and the Faculty Senate, through which colleagues expressed their desire for direct communication with leadership.

W. P. Andrew Lee, M.D., Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs, Provost, and Dean of the Medical School, provided updates on the faculty and extramural grant growth, key programs, and expectations in mission areas. The vice provosts – Joan Conaway, Ph.D., Eric Peterson, M.D., M.P.H., Alyssa H. Hasty, Ph.D., and Sherry Huang, M.D. – shared relevant information related to our research enterprise, faculty development, and our educational mission. Cameron Slocum, M.B.A., Vice President and Chief Operating Officer for Academic Affairs and the UT Southwestern Medical Group, focused on business operations and usage of indirect cost recovery from research grants. Jonathan Efron, M.D., Executive Vice President for Health System Affairs, also joined the visits to clinical departments, described new clinical initiatives, and addressed faculty concerns about MyChart messages, clinic templates, Health System expansion, and other issues.

In total, the group completed 48 visits – each tailored by the respective Department Chair, Center Director, or Dean to suit their specific needs. Faculty members raised a wide range of topics including social spaces and housekeeping, food options, burnout and effectiveness of programs designed to help faculty, recruitment and admissions process for graduate students, need for research assistance and timely responsiveness from support teams, tensions between clinic template mandates and teaching expectations, among others.

The Provost Office is partnering with various stakeholders on campus to address these concerns. After sharing faculty’s feedback, the café on the 14th floor of the ND building reopened last month and now offers a weekly buffet. There is a planned renovation of the L4-Y4 connection space on the South Campus to offer a place where faculty and trainees can gather informally. Faculty Wellness is preparing to offer enhanced support for new faculty parents. The target size for the graduate class was increased this year and a process of direct admissions is being considered. In coordination with Business Affairs, the Provost Office is evaluating how to strengthen the Sponsored Programs Administration. It is also planning to launch resources for faculty to make teaching more efficient and streamlined. As progress is made in the upcoming months, information will be distributed through this newsletter.

Now Open:

Skyline Café Fourteen

Weekly Buffet

The Skyline Café Fourteen, located on the 14th floor of the ND Building on North Campus, reopened last month in response to faculty feedback from the departmental visits.

It offers a weekly buffet with a rotating menu featuring a variety of cuisines, including Indian and Italian dishes. The buffet is available on Wednesdays from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Scan the QR code available in the dining space and share your feedback through the survey platform.

UTSW Among Top Medical and Graduate Schools

UT Southwestern was recognized as one of the top 16 medical schools for research by U.S. News & World Report (USNWR), earning Tier 1 status, the highest performing category.

The methodology ranks the top medical schools by placing them within four different levels of performance. The scoring formula for the research-oriented computation factored measures of research activity (60%), student selectivity (20%), and faculty resources (20%). UT Southwestern is among the 16 schools that earned top-performing scores in the 85-99 percentile.

In addition, USNWR’s Best Graduate Schools continued to use ordinal rankings to evaluate various programs. UT Southwestern’s Physician Assistant program in the School of Health Professions (No. 8, tied) and the Biological Sciences program in the Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences (No. 25, tied) were included in the country’s Top 25 Graduate School programs.

Faculty Announcements

Dr. Marple Named ABOHNS President-Elect

The American Board of Otolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery (ABOHNS) Board of Directors has named Bradley F. Marple, M.D., Professor and Chair of the Department of Otolaryngology–Head and Neck Surgery, as its President-Elect. He assumed this new role on March 29.

ABOHNS is the national certifying body for the specialty of otolaryngology-head and neck surgery. It ensures that physicians meet standards of training, knowledge, and professionalism through initial board certification and continuing certification.

Dr. Marple began volunteer service with the Board in 1996 and was elected to the ABOHNS Board of Directors in 2018. Read more.

Dr. Chen Elected 2027 ASCB President

This month, Elizabeth Chen, Ph.D., Professor of Molecular Biology and Cell Biology was elected to serve as President of the American Society for Cell Biology (ASCB) in 2027. She will first serve as President-Elect on the ASCB Executive Committee beginning in 2026.

Founded in the 1960s by pioneering cell biologists using electron microscopy to reveal the internal structures of cells, the ASCB has grown into an international organization composed of investigators using molecular biology, genetics, biochemistry, light microscopy, high-resolution imaging, biophysics, bioengineering, and genomic sequencing to study all aspects of cells in health and disease. Today, the society has over 6,000 members worldwide, leading a global and multidisciplinary scientific community focused on the cell, the basic unit of all life. Read more.

Faculty Participate in Executive Leadership Programs

Pictured above from left: Susan Matulevicius, M.D., Melissa Kirkwood, M.D., Alysa Hasty, Ph.D., Toral Patel, M.D., Rinarani Sanghavi, M.D., and Sherry Huang, M.D.

Four UT Southwestern faculty graduated earlier this month from the Hedwig van Ameringen Executive Leadership in Academic Medicine (ELAM) and the Executive Leadership in Health Care (ELH) fellowship programs, marking the largest cohort of UTSW faculty to date to participate in the prestigious programs.

Susan Matulevicius, M.D., Professor of Internal Medicine and Associate Dean of Faculty Wellness completed the ELAM program. Melissa Kirkwood, M.D., Professor of Surgery and Division Chief of Vascular Surgery, Toral Patel, M.D., Associate Professor of Neurological Surgery, Neurology, and Radiation Oncology, and Rinarani Sanghavi, M.D., Professor of Pediatrics, were part of ELH.

ELAM is a highly competitive program dedicated to developing the professional and personal skills required to lead and manage in today’s complex health care environment. The ELH curriculum is designed for senior-level women leaders interested in advancing their careers in hospitals and health care systems to executive positions.

Join the Faculty Assembly on May 19

The annual Faculty Assembly is May 19 in Lecture Hall D1.600 from 5–6 p.m.

Join to learn about the state of the University and the year ahead from President Daniel K. Podolsky, M.D. Receive an update on Academic Affairs from W. P. Andrew Lee, M.D., Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs, Provost, and Dean of the Medical School. Listen to a panel discussion featuring UT Southwestern’s Executive Leadership moderated by Faculty Senate President Helen King, M.D.

Research Track Faculty Initiative

Over 109 Research Track faculty members attended at least one of two lunches hosted by Alyssa Hasty, Ph.D., Vice Provost and Senior Associate Dean for Faculty Affairs and Career Development, and Joan Conaway, Ph.D., Vice Provost and Dean of Basic Research. The events featured dynamic conversations about the track and career paths between faculty and the Vice Provosts. They also served as the launch of a new initiative to recognize and support faculty members on the Research Track.

Looking ahead, the effort will focus on community building and faculty development, with upcoming sessions such as career mapping and trajectory, engagement in institutional and national service, mentorship of trainees within the research group, and improved communication skills – all of which are designed to empower faculty to thrive. All faculty on the Research Track are encouraged to participate. For more information, contact Emily Texta.

Milestone Moment: Spring Commencements

May is graduation season at UT Southwestern!

Peter O’Donnell Jr. School of Public Health

May 14, 10 a.m., NB2.EEF Auditorium

The inaugural graduating class is comprised of 28 Master of Public Health (M.P.H.) students, four Master of Science in Clinical Investigation (M.S.C.I.) students, and one Ph.D. in Public Health scholar. Ambassador Kay Bailey Hutchison, who served as the Permanent Representative of the U.S. to NATO from 2017 to 2021, will deliver the keynote address.

UT Southwestern Medical School

May 16, 11 a.m., Morton H. Meyerson Symphony Center

The 2025 class will graduate 226 medical students. Dallas business leader and humanitarian Ross Perot Jr. will be the commencement keynote speaker.

UT Southwestern Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences

May 22, 7 p.m., Tom and Lula Gooch Auditorium

The Graduate School will confer degrees to 84 students. Zhijian “James” Chen, Ph.D., Professor of Molecular Biology, Director of the Center for Inflammation Research at UTSW, and the 2024 Albert Lasker Basic Medical Research Award winner, will present the keynote address.

All three ceremonies will be livestreamed.

Funding Opportunities

Show Me the Money: Finding Funding Opportunities through Library Services

This session will highlight the Grants and Funding Guide and discuss how to search for and manage funding opportunities in the Pivot database.

May 14. Register to attend.

Biotech+ at Pegasus Park Commercialization Milestone Award

A panel of commercialization experts will select the most compelling technology, or technologies, to receive up to $100,000 in grant funding.

Apply by May 31.

Team Science Pilot Program Grant*

The award provides up to $10,000 in seed funding to support teams developing proposals for extramural funding. This seed money is meant to support preliminary data collection and team activities and includes coaching sessions on evidence-based practices for building effective, collaborative teams.

Apply by June 2.

High-Impact DCT Grants – Fast Focused Funding*

This opportunity offers financial support for innovative clinical and translational research projects, with a focus on data science, clinical care process improvement, and early-stage translational research (DCT). Up to two awards of $25,000 each will be granted across 10 months.

View full RFA and application. Submissions due June 2.

*Sponsored by the UT Southwestern Clinical and Translational Science Award Program

WISMAC Poster Session Travel Award Winners

A total of 133 projects were presented during the Celebration of Women in Science Poster Session hosted by the Women in Science and Medicine Advisory Committee (WISMAC). Three graduate student researchers, two postdoctoral researchers, and one faculty member won $500 Travel Awards to be used toward conference registration as they expand their academic journeys. Pictured above from left to right:

Lauren Miterko-Myers, Ph.D., postdoctoral researcher in the lab of William Dauer, M.D.
Kubra Naqvi, Ph.D., postdoctoral researcher in the lab of Michael Shiloh, M.D., Ph.D.
Natalie Noebel, graduate student researcher in the lab of Carrie McAdams, M.D.
Yehui Sun, graduate student researcher in the lab of Daniel Siegwart, Ph.D.
Jane Warshaw, graduate student researcher in the lab of Denise Marciano, M.D., Ph.D.
Alesha White, M.D., Assistant Instructor of Obstetrics and Gynecology.

Special thanks to the 57 UT Southwestern faculty members who served as judges this year and the mentors of the winners for their commitment to nurturing the next generation of researchers.

Important Dates and Upcoming Events

Multisite Research Trial Knowledge Hub Seminar Series*

Join Susan Iannaccone, M.D., Professor of Pediatrics and Neurology, for a discussion on the benefits, challenges, and practical considerations involved in pursuing industry-sponsored research as a UTSW investigator.

May 7. Register to attend.

Digital Accessibility Webinar

Join the EquallyAble Alliance Business Resource Group for a Global Accessibility Awareness Day webinar featuring Glenn Philp, Information Resources Accessibility Officer.

May 15. Register to attend.

UT System AI Symposium in Healthcare

This event will highlight the latest breakthroughs in Artificial Intelligence (AI) across research, education, and clinical care.

May 15-16. View event details.

KL2 Scholar Information Session*

This two-year program is designed for junior faculty who show great promise toward becoming successful, independently funded clinical and translational science investigators.

May 16. Register to attend.

Didactic Session: Partnering for Impact: Community-Engaged Research and Evaluation*

Learn how to develop a hypothesis and logic model in collaboration with a community partner.

May 20. Register to attend.

Charles Morris Ginsburg Simulation-Based Quality Improvement and Research Forum

The event will feature the latest in health care simulation, quality improvement, and research.

May 21. Register to attend.

What Makes a Good Literature Review? Tips and Tricks from the Library

May 27. Register to attend.

Faculty and APP Wellness Retreat

A day-long retreat to rejuvenate and reconnect with your passion for academic medicine.

June 6. Register to attend.

Successfully Earning a K Award (SEAK) Workshop*

Designed to increase the likelihood of funding as you write or resubmit your K award application, this workshop focuses on each of the steps of the grant process. Early-career faculty working on a K01, K08, or K23 submission are encouraged to apply.