Congratulations to Sharon Henry, MD, as well, who officially became First Vice President of the American College of Surgeons (ACS) last month and was also just inducted into the ACS Academy of Master Surgeon Educators. This Academy is highly selective, as Dr. Henry is among a group of only 89 esteemed surgeon educators from the U.S. who were inducted into membership this year. 

I also want to congratulate the 2026 interprofessional University of Maryland, Baltimore team, who won the Wildcard Prize yet again at last month’s annual D.C. Public Health Case Challenge, hosted by the National Academy of Medicine. The team developed an education, socialization, and outreach program called BLOOM (Belonging, Life Skills, Optimism, and Optimal Mental Health) to address the mental health, social, and reproductive health needs of D.C. teens with autism spectrum disorder. The team included two UMSOM students, Jamie S. Guillergan, MSN and MPH candidate, and Imraina Alam, MPH candidate. Their solutions will be published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS). Thanks to Gregory Carey, PhD who served as assistant coach and Diane Marie St. George, PhD who served as the UMSOM advisor. 

I am happy to announce the School of Medicine’s inaugural Faculty Chair for the SOM Council, Janaki Deepak, MBBS, Associate Professor in the Department of Medicine. Dr. Deepak was nominated and elected by the faculty representatives of the Council. Her role includes approving the agenda and presiding at the monthly meetings, which are open for all faculty to attend. She and Mary-Claire Roghmann, MD, who serves as the Administrative Chair of the Council, are working together to ensure our SOM Council functions efficiently and productively.  

I’m pleased to share that we have launched a new service for faculty called the SOM AI Grant Matcher. The AI Grant Matcher scans more than 30 federal and foundation funding sources every day, including NIH, CDC, HRSA, DoD, and NSF, and matches new opportunities to faculty’s individual research profiles. I know how hard it is to keep up with funding announcements on top of clinical, teaching, and lab responsibilities, and this tool is meant to take on some of that work for you. When there are matches, you will receive one email each Tuesday listing each opportunity’s deadline, agency, confidence score, and the reason it matched. If nothing matches, you won’t receive an email. I hope this resource helps you find opportunities that advance your important work!

I want to highlight and encourage everyone to attend an important lecture coming up on December 1 called “I Don’t Bounce Back Like I Used to: Aging and Reslience” by Heather Whitson, MD, Distinguished Professor of Neuroscience and Medicine and Director of Duke University’s Center on Aging. Hosted by our Center for Research on Aging, Dr. Whitson is this year’s Andrew P Goldberg Memorial Lecture guest speaker and she will highlight one of our significant generational challenges by providing a bio-psycho-neurocognitive perspective on resilience. You can register here to attend on Tuesday, December 1 at 1 p.m. in Leadership Hall. A poster and networking reception will follow at 2:30 p.m. in the MSTF Atrium. I hope to see you there! 

Finally, register here to attend the UMSOM’s 2026 Winter Holiday Celebration on Wednesday, December 2 in the HSRF III Atrium. Sign up for one of two sessions between 4 and 7 p.m. I’m looking forward to celebrating the end of the calendar year together! 

As we look ahead to tomorrow’s election, I encourage each member of our academic medical community to make their voice heard by voting. Participation in our democracy is both a privilege and a responsibility, and every vote matters. Regardless of your perspectives or priorities, take the time to be informed, participate in the process, and exercise your right to vote. Thank you for being engaged citizens and for helping strengthen the communities we serve.

With enthusiasm and commitment,

Mark

Mark T. Gladwin, MD

Dean, University of Maryland School of Medicine

Vice President for Medical Affairs, University of Maryland, Baltimore

John Z. and Akiko K. Bowers Distinguished Professor and Dean