Howard Part stepping down as dean of Boonshoft School of Medicine

Howard Part, M.D., will step down from his position as dean to return to the full-time faculty.

After serving for 13 years as dean of the Wright State University Boonshoft School of Medicine, Howard Part, M.D., has announced he will step down from his position to return to the full-time faculty. A national search will be conducted for a new dean, and Part will continue in his position until a new dean is chosen.

“The Boonshoft School of Medicine has seen tremendous growth under Dr. Part’s leadership,” said David R. Hopkins, president of Wright State University. “During his tenure, the school has had an extraordinary record of achievement, including a successful fundraising effort that garnered the largest single gift ever given to the university. It has also forged partnerships with donors, business and health care organizations that made possible the opening of the Gandhi Medical Education Center on the Wright State campus, the creation of a Department of Geriatrics, the Center for Global Health Systems, Management and Policy, and the Wright State University & Premier Health Partners Neuroscience Institute and much more.”

After joining the medical school’s fully affiliated faculty in 1988, Part held a succession of leadership positions, including vice chair for medical education, associate dean for faculty and clinical affairs and acting dean of the medical school from April 1998 until May 1999.  He was appointed the fifth dean of the Wright State University Boonshoft School of Medicine in May 1999.

“My years as dean of the Boonshoft School of Medicine have been among the most rewarding of my life,” Part said. “It has been my distinct honor to participate in the medical training of the more than 2,115 students who have passed through our doors since I started in the medical school in 1988. The opportunity to work with the outstanding leadership, faculty, students and staff at Wright State and oversee the growth of the Boonshoft School of Medicine has been the highlight of my career.”

During Part’s tenure, the school has experienced extraordinary growth including:

• The doubling of external research funding.
• The philanthropic donation of nearly $75 million to the medical school, including a $28.5 million cash gift – the single largest gift in the region.
• The opening of the new Gandhi Medical Education Center, a $13.5 million state-of-the-art facility wholly devoted to the education of medical students in their first two years.
• The establishment of the Department of Geriatrics, the Department of Neurology, the Wright State University & Premier Health Partners Neuroscience Institute, the National Center for Medical Readiness, and the Center for Global Health Systems, Management and Policy, and the Center for Genomics Research.
• The creation of the Elizabeth Berry Gray Chair in Surgery and the Boonshoft Chair in the Center for Global Health Systems, Management and Policy.
• The creation of integrated, five-year dual-degree M.D./M.P.H. and M.D./M.B.A. programs to forge the next generation of physician leaders, in addition to a seven-year M.D./Ph.D. program for students interested in research.
• The groundbreaking for the new Wright State Physicians medical office building on the Wright State campus, which will provide a conveniently located clinical site for patients, along with a clinical setting for faculty to conduct translational research.

In addition to his duties as dean, Dr. Part serves as chair of the board of Wright State Physicians, the largest independent physician-owned practice in the region. He is certified by the American Board of Internal Medicine and is a fellow of the American College of Physicians. He has received numerous awards, and in 2005 he was honored with a Health Care Heroes, Lifetime Achievement Award from the Dayton Business Journal.

The national search for a new dean will begin immediately.