Dear Colleagues-Friends,

I like to keep you informed about stories that may appeal to you. Here are some new ones that have crossed my desk:

  • We’re proud to see Nathan Lewis, M.D., honored as Clerkship Director of the Year by the Society for Academic Emergency Medicine. The alumnus of the Class of 2009 now directs our Emergency Medicine Department’s clerkship for M4s and also co-hosts EM Stud, a podcast for medical students around the country considering careers in emergency medicine.
  • At the medical school’s graduate student recognition ceremony earlier this spring, the room was full of student awardees along with graduates, mentors, family and friends celebrating the scientific achievements of more than 50 graduate students. “We’re proud of our students and always enjoy highlighting their accomplishments,” says Michael Grotewiel, Ph.D., the medical school’s interim associate dean for graduate education. “But this year was exceptional because we got to announce that seven students were nominated for the Lindau Nobel Laureate Meeting – and two have been selected to attend!” More than five dozen SOM-level awards and 18 departmental-level awards were presented at the ceremony.
  • We salute the Class of 57’s Wil Blechman who has been inducted into the medical school’s chapter of the Alpha Omega Alpha Honor Medical Society in celebration of his second career advocating for the world’s youngest citizens. After a more-than-30-year career as a rheumatologist mostly focused on older adults, he turned his attention as president for Kiwanis International to the issues that can positively or negatively affect the development and well-being of children.
  • Baseball. Fathers. Sons. It’s got all the classic elements of a feel-good Father’s Day story. The Class of 2018’s Ron Rosenberg used a cross-country tour of every Major League Baseball stadium to raise money for SportableRVA – and it was all inspired by the man who sparked in him a love of sports as well as a love for medicine — his father Neil Rosenberg, an alumnus of our Class of 1978.

You may also want to check out the latest issue of Impact, the quarterly publication from VCU’s Development and Alumni Relations office. Vol. 14 includes a pair of terrific feature stories that show the impact that philanthropy has in the medical school. You can find the stories online.

  • An International Outlook, a 4-page first-person feature by Dr. Lance Hampton on his volunteer trips to Vietnam. Dr. Hampton, who holds the Barbara and William B. Thalhimer Jr. Professorship in Urology, uses these trips to help patients – both at home and abroad.
  • Better Together, a 4-page feature on Dr. Bruce Rubin’s engineering expertise has brought about an award-winning partnership between industry and academia to improve the lives of children with lung diseases. Dr. Rubin holds the Jessie Ball DuPont Distinguished Professorship.

I hope you’ll enjoy reading these stories.



With every good wish,

Peter F. Buckley, M.D.
Dean, VCU School of Medicine
Executive Vice President for Medical Affairs, VCU Health System