The academic year is underway with our MD and several biomedical graduate programs settled into the Drexel Health Sciences Building in University City. We celebrated this historical move at an event in September. You can see photos from that gathering on page 11. What an honor to bring together so many members of our Drexel colleges and schools, and guests from our affiliates and the community, to enjoy our new space and marvel at the possibilities ahead for interprofessional collaboration in education, research and care.

The Drexel Health Sciences Building was also the site of two other wonderful celebrations:

On September 22, we marked the 30th anniversary of Drexel’s Partnership Comprehensive Care Practice with a half-day symposium. The program featured remarks from current and former Partnership leaders, as well as esteemed experts from local government and nonprofit organizations, and offered insights into both the history and the future of HIV care in Philadelphia and beyond.

The Marion Spencer Fay Award was presented by the Lynn Yeakel Institute for Women’s Health and Leadership to Erica Ollmann Saphire, PhD, MBA, on November 9 at the Health Sciences Building. Dr. Saphire is a renowned virologist who serves as president and CEO of the La Jolla Institute for Immunology. She gave a lecture, “How to Turn Competitors Into Collaborators,” which was followed by an award ceremony and reception.

The Yeakel Institute also celebrated the achievements of two remarkable women leaders, while raising scholarship funds for underrepresented medical students, at the Woman One Award ceremony on October 5. Ala Stanford, MD, the founder of the Black Doctors COVID-19 Consortium and the Center for Health Equity in North Philadelphia, was honored for her leadership and commitment to eliminating health inequities and bringing care to marginalized people. Ellen Yin, MBA, recipient of this year’s James Beard Foundation Outstanding Restaurateur Award and founder of the High Street Hospitality Group, was honored for her success as a restaurateur and her dedication to community leadership.

Finally, I am pleased to announce that Mark Woodland, MS, MD, was appointed to a new role — associate dean, advocacy and policy — effective September 1. Dr. Woodland has been a faculty member of our College of Medicine for nearly three decades, having served as interim chair of the Department of Obstetrics & Gynecology, program director of the Obstetrics & Gynecology Residency, and vice dean for graduate medical education as well as faculty for professionalism and bioethics courses. As associate dean of advocacy and policy, he is tasked with collaborating with departments, affiliate institutions and practices to identify key areas for advocacy and policy development to positively impact both the academic and clinical learning environment for current and future clinicians.

As always, I thank you all for your dedication to excellence, leadership and engagement. As we look forward to what lies ahead in 2024 and beyond, I wish you a safe and joyous holiday season and a happy new year.

Charles B. Cairns, MD
Walter H. and Leonore Annenberg Dean Senior Vice President of Medical Affairs