Medical school dean slated to be 'Dean of Deans' H. David Wilson, dean of the School of Medicine and Health Sciences, was elected “chair-elect” of the Council of Deans at the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC) annual meeting Oct. 30. The first North Dakota dean to hold such a high office in the AAMC, Wilson will assume duties as chair of the Council of Deans next fall. The AAMC Council of Deans represents the deans from all 125 accredited U.S. and 17 accredited Canadian medical schools. The group identifies issues affecting academic medicine and develops strategies to achieve the various missions of medical schools. “The AAMC Council of Deans is instrumental in guiding the association’s efforts toward excellence in medical education, research and patient care,” said Darrell Kirch, AAMC president. “He is a wise and experienced leader, and we at the AAMC, as well as his colleagues across the country, look forward to David Wilson’s leadership on the Executive Council next year.” “This is a terrific honor for Dean Wilson and for the University of North Dakota,” said President Charles Kupchella. “To be named ‘Dean of Deans’ by the deans is clearly no small matter. It surely shows that he is highly respected as a leading figure in American medical education. We're lucky to have him.” This is not Wilson’s first service in national medical associations. He was elected to the AAMC Executive Council in 2004 and has served as chair of the AAMC Section on Community-Based Deans since 2002. From 2001-2004 Wilson was an elected member of the American Medical Association’s Council on Medical Education and served as a member of the Liaison Committee on Medical Education, the 17-member committee that is authorized by the U.S. Department of Education to accredit all U.S. and Canadian medical schools. Wilson grew up in Johnston City, Ill. He graduated from Wabash College in Crawfordsville, Ind. before going on to medical school at St. Louis University School of Medicine. He spent 22 years at the University of Kentucky College of Medicine in Lexington and was serving as full professor and associate dean for academic affairs when he left to join the UND in 1995. The AAMC is a nonprofit association representing all 125 accredited U.S. and 17 accredited Canadian medical schools; nearly 400 major teaching hospitals and health systems, including 68 Department of Veterans Affairs medical centers; and 96 academic and scientific societies. Through these institutions and organizations, the AAMC represents 109,000 faculty members, 67,000 medical students, and 104,000 resident physicians. -- Amanda Scurry, public information specialist, UND SMHS, ascurry@medicine.nodak.edu, 701-777-0871