A recent visit to my granddaughters’ local library got me thinking about health provider education in the future (really!). The little one had pulled me up to an area on the second floor of the library where there was a balcony overlooking the rest of the children’s area. The firstRead More

Here we go again! One of the recurring events in higher education is the need to engage in reaccreditation of each of our health care academic programs. Our medical student curriculum is no exception, and our next accreditation visit from the Liaison Committee on Medical Education (LCME) likely will beRead More

This past Wednesday, Susan and I attended a fun event—the second annual Longest Table get-together held on University Avenue in Grand Forks. It was an opportunity for those in the greater Grand Forks community to come together for talk, music, and supper. It was quite a sight—there were 127 tablesRead More

This week’s “From the Dean” column is brought to you by Patrick Carr, Ph.D., the School’s assistant dean for medical curriculum, who will discuss facilitating leadership in medical students and unmasking the “hidden curriculum.” As another academic year begins, our thoughts are focused on helping our incoming students on theirRead More

As part of my new duties as UND’s interim president, I had the pleasure and honor of hosting the annual UND Bus Tour of North Dakota earlier this week. Along with about 30 new faculty and administrators, we traveled across the northern portion of North Dakota. Each year since 1990,Read More

Next week, I will be “On the Road Again” in my new role as interim president of UND. Along with about 30 new faculty and administrators, we will board a UND bus and travel across the northern portion of North Dakota. Each year since 1990, UND’s newcomers board the busRead More

This has been an exciting week as the School welcomed 77 entering medical students from the Class of 2023 to campus. My wife Dr. Susan Farkas and I hosted a reception for them this past Wednesday evening at the North Dakota Museum of Art, and it was fun for usRead More

It is with sadness that we note the passing of Dr. Richard Olafson, a neurosurgeon and former dean of the SMHS Southeast (Fargo) campus. I got to know Dick well over the years after he retired, and I always found him to be a gentle, kind, and thoughtful man. HeRead More

This past Wednesday evening, I attended a reception hosted by the UND John D. Odegard School of Aerospace Sciences at the annual week-long gathering of aviation enthusiasts at the Experimental Aircraft Association (EAA) annual meeting called AirVenture but known colloquially by the Wisconsin town where it is held—Oshkosh. Some 600,000Read More

Earlier this week the UND School of Medicine & Health Sciences welcomed three representatives from the American Medical Association (AMA) who are part of the AMA’s initiative on Accelerating Change in Medical Education (ACE). ACE is a multi-million dollar program wherein the AMA provides competitive grants to selected schools thatRead More

The “From the Dean” column is brought to you this week by Laura Block, the School’s associate dean for Administration & Finance and chief operating officer, who will discuss the move into the new academic year (fiscal year 2020) and UND’s new budget model called MIRA. Happy summer, everyone! Here’sRead More

Last Friday night, Susan and I had the pleasure of attending the 35th General Surgery Residency Program Graduation banquet hosted by Department of Surgery Professor and Chair Dr. Robert Sticca. The event recognized all UND surgical residents, but especially the five residents graduating from the program. The ballroom where theRead More

This week was my first as interim President of UND. As you may know, I am continuing as vice president for Health Affairs and dean of the UND School of Medicine & Health Sciences (SMHS). It was an especially busy week because I also attended the summer meeting of theRead More

This coming Sunday, June 16, will be my first day as interim President of UND, a role I accepted in addition to my continuing roles as vice president for Health Affairs and dean of your School of Medicine & Health Sciences. As you might imagine, I’ve already been in touchRead More

It has been quite a gratifying week since the State Board of Higher Education met last Thursday and confirmed me as interim president of UND, starting June 16, 2019. Since the announcement, I’ve been overwhelmed and humbled by the many congratulatory and supportive messages I’ve received from both within andRead More