Dr. Edward Healton, executive dean of Georgetown’s School of Medicine and executive vice president for Health Sciences, updated the community today on the school’s leadership transition. As announced at the beginning of this school year, Dean Stephen Ray Mitchell will end his tenure as dean for medical education on June 30. Healton will assume those duties in addition to his own while a search committee interviews candidates for a replacement.
The committee’s work began in February of this year with a workshop on bias reduction. After listening sessions with alumni and other members of the community as well as individual interviews, the committee expects to name a replacement midway through the 2020-21 school year. According to the email, the coronavirus pandemic led to delays in the interview and hiring process.
“I embrace this opportunity with enthusiasm and I am grateful for the deep strengths and commitment of the current academic leadership in the School of Medicine,” Healton wrote in the announcement of his new role. Board-certified in neurology and psychiatry, Healton joined the university and its clinical partner, MedStar Health, in 2001, serving as senior vice president for medical affairs and medical director of the MedStar National Rehabilitation Hospital (MNRH). In his current role, Healton is responsible for education and research initiatives in all elements of the Georgetown University Medical Center, a $270 million undertaking.
Outgoing dean Stephen Ray Mitchell began his career at the school in 1988 in a faculty position at Georgetown University Hospital. After numerous roles there, he became involved in the curriculum and academic affairs at the School of Medicine, finally taking on his current role in 2002. “I remain grateful to Ray, especially for his leadership at the School of Medicine this spring during these most difficult times,” Healton wrote in the announcement. Mitchell will next serve as dean emeritus and a member of the faculty in the department of medicine.
The headline has been updated to reflect Healton is not serving as the dean, but assuming the duties.
