Valerie Weber, MD, Named Deborah J. Tuttle, MD and John P. Piper, MD Vice Dean for Educational Affairs
December 16, 2016
Valerie Weber's white coat has been embroidered with her new title.
Valerie Weber, MD, MS, FACP, has been named the inaugural Deborah J. Tuttle, MD and John P. Piper, MD Vice Dean for Educational Affairs. A ceremony for the dedication and installation of Dr. Weber’s new title was held on Wednesday, December 14, at the College of Medicine’s Queen Lane Campus.
Daniel V. Schidlow, MD, Walter H. and Leonore Annenberg Dean and senior vice president of medical affairs, welcomed the room full of guests, including Deborah J. Tuttle, MD, and her husband John P. Piper, MD. Following a few remarks from Brian Blake, PhD, provost and executive vice president for academic affairs at Drexel University, Dean Schidlow cloaked Dr. Weber with a white coat bearing her new title.
Weber joined Drexel University College of Medicine as vice dean for educational affairs in 2014. Prior to joining Drexel, she was on the senior leadership team at The Commonwealth Medical College, serving as the founding chair, Department of Clinical Sciences, and associate dean for clinical affairs from 2009–14. In this role, she designed and implemented several innovative elements of the medical curriculum at a new allopathic medical school, seeing the school through from preliminary to full accreditation status.
"Drexel University College of Medicine is one of the largest allopathic medical schools in the country, and as such, is responsible for the education of 1 of every 72 MD physicians," notes Dr. Weber. "It is hard to overstate the importance of what is being set in motion today. This gift will impact the training of generations of future physicians to come, who will care for countless patients. I am so grateful for the generosity of this gift."
Dean Daniel Shidlow, Drs. John Piper and Deborah Tuttle, Vice Dean Valerie Weber and Drexel Provost Brian Blake.
About Our Donors
John P. Piper, MD, MCP '83, and Deborah J. Tuttle, MD, MCP '82.
Deborah J. Tuttle, MD, a Philadelphia native, graduated from Medical College of Pennsylvania in 1982. She is also a graduate of Northeast High School and Arcadia University. Currently, Dr. Tuttle is a neonatologist with Christiana Care Neonatal Associates in Newark, Delaware. She has served as the medical director of the Mother’s Milk Bank at Christiana Hospital, and has been the physician director for Neonatal Performance Improvement Initiatives. Always wanting to give back, Dr. Tuttle has worked with military families at Dover Air Force Base, and she serves on the Advisory Council of the Ronald McDonald House of Delaware.
John P. Piper, MD, graduated from Medical College of Pennsylvania in 1983. Dr. Piper is an infectious disease specialist at Infectious Disease Associates, P.A., affiliated with Christiana Care, in Newark, Delaware. He also serves on the Board of Directors of the Delaware Academy of Medicine. Through his infectious disease practice, he has been actively involved in the residency teaching programs for most of the Christiana Care residency programs.
Drs. Tuttle and Piper have supported Drexel University College of Medicine over the course of their careers. In addition to the Vice Dean for Educational Affairs, they established the Deborah Jane Tuttle, MD ’82 and John P. Piper, MD ’83 Endowed Scholarship Fund as well as the Kathryn J. and Charles B. Tuttle Lectureship Fund for cardiology, named in honor of Dr. Tuttle’s parents.