Dr. Sanders Williams, current dean of the School of Medicine and the Duke-National University of Singapore Graduate Medical School, has been appointed to the newly created position of senior vice chancellor for academic affairs, Duke University Medical Center officials announced Monday.
The search for a new dean of the School of Medicine is currently underway and is expected to conclude by January 2008, DUMC officials said.
Williams will continue in his post as dean of the GMS until the end of the 2007-2008 academic year.
In his new position, Williams will promote collaborative efforts such as joint-faculty recruitment and medical student transfer programs, oversee the implementation of strategic plans at both schools and lead philanthropic and fundraising efforts at Duke's School of Medicine.
He will also serve as a liaison between the two new deans and Dr. Victor Dzau, chancellor for health affairs and president and CEO of Duke University Health System.
"We're very excited about the chance to successfully pursue our many efforts at both schools with a more effective breadth of leadership," Dzau said.
"These plans reflect the major growth of Duke's academic, research and clinical care efforts," he added.
DUMC officials said Williams has proven to be an effective leader in spearheading the strategic plans for the two schools but noted that the major undertaking of managing both institutions would benefit from additional leadership.
"The new organization will divide the workload and allow Dr. Williams, who is a true scientific visionary, to spend time working to improve the quality and coordination of science within the two campuses," said Dr. Ross McKinney, vice dean for research in Duke's School of Medicine.
An important responsibility of senior academic leaders is to ensure that operations within an institution run smoothly so that the potential of each individual is achieved, Williams said in a statement Monday.
For example, in his new position, Sanders will help lead the GMS's adoption of Duke's medical school curriculum-exposing scientists and students to research topics that are well-established in Singapore, Dzau said.
Since Williams took the helm of Duke's School of Medicine in April 2001, it has experienced a near doubling of research funds from the National Institutes of Health to almost $350 million, the construction of five research buildings and an increase of several hundred new faculty.
"We're very excited about the change," Dzau said. "Duke is on its way to the top, and this is definitely another push in the right direction."
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