UM SOM Launches Unprecedented Initiatives to Create New Generation of Research Scientists Among Students, Trainees and Faculty

New and Expanded Research Development Programs at the University of Maryland School of Medicine will Include Focus on Developing Junior, Minority and Female Faculty Investigators as well as Students and Trainees

James B. Kaper, PhD, Senior Associate Dean for Academic Affairs at the University of Maryland School of Medicine (UM SOM), and Chairman of the UM SOM Department of Microbiology and Immunology, along with UM SOM Dean E. Albert Reece, MD, PhD, MBA, have announced a broad slate of new appointments and programs designed to develop special innovative research expertise among students, trainees and junior faculty at the School of Medicine.

New appointments include senior members of the Dean’s Office who will be dedicated to special Research Development Programs: Wendy Sanders, MA, Assistant Dean for Research Career Development is promoted to Associate Dean; Kerri A. Thom, MD, MS, Associate Professor in the Department of Epidemiology and Public Health has been promoted to Assistant Dean for Student Research and Education; Mary-Claire Roghmann, MD, MS, Professor in the Department of Epidemiology and Public Health, has been promoted to Associate Dean for Physician-Scientist Training, and Trans-disciplinary Research Advancement; and Dudley Strickland, PhD, Professor in the Department of Surgery and Assistant Dean for Graduate Programs in Life Sciences and the Postdoctoral Scholars Program has been promoted to Associate Dean.

The new and expanded roles are designed to further transform and enhance the School of Medicine’s research programs, and specifically help to advance innovation, collaboration and discovery among UM SOM students, trainees and faculty --and with a special emphasis on junior, minority and female faculty – to achieving extraordinary research expertise and accomplishments.

"These four appointments underscore the critical importance of developing effective researchers at every level of our organization,” said Dean Reece, who is also the vice president for Medical Affairs, University of Maryland, and the John Z. and Akiko K. Bowers Distinguished Professor. “As the School of Medicine continues to grow significantly as a global biomedical research enterprise, it is imperative that we do everything we can to develop our students, trainees and our faculty into top biomedical scientists and extraordinarily accomplished investigators."

In her new role as Associate Dean for Research Career Development, Ms. Sanders will expand the content of the Research Career Development Program (RCDP), which she conceptualized and founded to provide a wide range of courses, seminars and individual assistance to all faculty and trainees. Specifically, her charge will be to expand the Research Career Development Program, with a Special Group Emphasis on junior, minority and women faculty investigators. In addition, she will focus on developing workshops on scientific leadership and team science, and implementing a faculty research mentoring program.

The RCDP has become one of the most popular and effective programs in the School of Medicine, with more than 1,000 faculty and postdoctoral students participating in courses and programs annually.

Before coming to UM SOM, Sanders served as director of the Professional Development Office at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. She earned a BA degree from Oberlin College and an MA degree from the University of Michigan.

Dr. Thom has been appointed Assistant Dean for Student Research and Education and Director of the Office of Student Research (OSR) at UM SOM. She will continue as an Associate Professor in the Department of Epidemiology and Public Health. In her new position, Dr. Thom will oversee the Office of Student Research, which provides SOM students with research education and experience. Specifically, she will be charged with providing all SOM students with exceptional basic, translational and clinical research experiences in biomedical and behavior sciences. In addition, she will facilitate a full understanding of the opportunities in academic medicine as well as enhancing their academic portfolio for future application to competitive residency training programs. Dr. Thom will also develop mentoring programs for students interested in research, and research careers, as well as undergraduate students in order to foster their interest in medicine and other professional fields.

Dr. Thom received a BS degree from the University of Florida in zoology, an MD degree from the University of Florida College of Medicine, and an MS degree in Clinical Research from UM SOM. She completed her internal medicine residency, and infectious diseases fellowship at the University of Maryland Medical Center where she served as chief resident. She joined the UM SOM faculty in 2005 as a clinical instructor in medicine, and was promoted to associate professor in 2014.

Dr. Roghmann has been appointed Associate Dean for Physician-Scientist Training, and Trans-disciplinary Research Advancement at UM SOM. She will continue to serve as a Professor in the Department of Epidemiology and Public Health. In her new position, Dr. Roghmann will lead the Medical Scientist Training Program (MD/PhD Program). She will continue to work with the Research Career Development Program, headed by Ms. Sanders, where she will focus on developing training in collaboration and team science. Dr. Roghmann will also foster multiple trans-disciplinary and collaborative groups to forge major research initiatives in order to seek funding from the National Institutes of Health and other federal agencies.

Dr. Roghmann received a BS degree in Molecular Genetics from the University of Rochester, an MD degree from Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, and an MS degree in Epidemiology and Preventive Medicine from the UM SOM. She joined the faculty at UM SOM in 1997. She performed her internship and residency at the University of Maryland Hospital and Baltimore Veterans Administration Hospital, where she was a chief resident as well as a clinical and research fellow in infectious diseases.

Dr. Strickland has been appointed Associate Dean for the Graduate Program in Life Sciences (GPILS), and the Postdoctoral Scholars Program. In this role, he will continue to oversee all aspects of the School of Medicine’s graduate programs in life sciences and postdoctoral programs. In addition, he will extend the new Research Development Programs to all graduate and post-graduate students as well, ensuring that these students are also developed into top collaborative and innovative investigators.

Dr. Strickland, who is also Director of the UM SOM Center for Vascular & Inflammatory Diseases, earned his Ph.D. degree from the University of Kansas in Biochemistry, and completed a postdoctoral fellowship at the University of Notre Dame in the Department of Chemistry. Following his postdoctoral fellowship, Dr. Strickland joined the American Red Cross Research Laboratories in 1982, and was also academically affiliated with The George Washington University. In 1995, he was appointed as Professor in the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology at The George Washington University. In 1997, Dr. Strickland became Head of the Department of Vascular Biology at the American Red Cross.

He then joined the University of Maryland in 2004 as Professor of Surgery and Physiology, and was appointed Director of the Center of Vascular and Inflammatory Diseases in 2005. In 2011, Dr. Strickland was named the Assistant Dean for the GPILS program, and the Post-Doctoral Scholars Program where he has made a transformative impact on our program, especially relative to increasing minority applications and enrollment. He has also made a personal commitment of time and attention to develop personalized strategies to foster success for individual students. He received the UM SOM Diversity and Inclusion Award in 2013.

About the University of Maryland School of Medicine

The University of Maryland School of Medicine was chartered in 1807 and is the first public medical school in the United States and continues today as an innovative leader in accelerating innovation and discovery in medicine. The School of Medicine is the founding school of the University of Maryland and is an integral part of the 11-campus University System of Maryland. Located on the University of Maryland’s Baltimore campus, the School of Medicine works closely with the University of Maryland Medical Center and Medical System to provide a research-intensive, academic and clinically based education. With 43 academic departments, centers and institutes and a faculty of more than 3,000 physicians and research scientists plus more than $400 million in extramural funding, the School is regarded as one of the leading biomedical research institutions in the U.S. with top-tier faculty and programs in cancer, brain science, surgery and transplantation, trauma and emergency medicine, vaccine development and human genomics, among other centers of excellence. The School is not only concerned with the health of the citizens of Maryland and the nation, but also has a global presence, with research and treatment facilities in more than 35 countries around the world.