First African-American Dean in UT Health Science Center's 99-Year History

MEMPHIS, Tenn., March 26 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Steve J. Schwab, MD, interim chancellor of the University of Tennessee Health Science Center (UTHSC), has appointed Noma Bennett Anderson, PhD, as dean for the College of Allied Health Sciences.  Dr. Anderson is the first African-American to be named as a dean in the 99-year history of UT Health Science Center.  She will begin her new role on the main UTHSC campus in Memphis around July 1.  Dr. Anderson was hired as the result of a national search.    

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"Over the past several weeks, I have gained a real appreciation for Dr. Anderson and of her knowledge and enthusiasm for the growth of our College of Allied Health Sciences. I can tell you she is a savvy professional who is dedicated to the expansion of the mission of the college on all of our campuses," Interim Chancellor Schwab said.

Dr. Anderson is the immediate past chair and currently a professor in the Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders at Florida International University (FIU) in Miami.  She was previously the dean in the School of Health Sciences at FIU for five years.  Prior to that, Dr. Anderson was a chair for 10 years and on the faculty for 16 years in the Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders at Howard University in Washington, D.C.  She was on the Board of Directors for the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association for three years and served as president in 2007.

Dr. Anderson holds a PhD in speech-language pathology from the University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pa., and an MS in speech pathology from Emerson College in Boston, Mass.  She received her BA in speech pathology and audiology from Hampton Institute in Hampton, Va. 

Dr. Anderson will be the fifth permanent dean to lead the College of Allied Health Sciences since its founding in 1972.  The college annually enrolls about 560 students in its 15 professional degree programs that offer career choices in Audiology and Speech Pathology, Clinical Laboratory Sciences (Cytotechnology, Histotechnology and Medical Technology), Dental Hygiene, Health Informatics and Information Management, Occupational Therapy, and Physical Therapy.  Classroom choices include traditional, online and distance-learning options.  

The UT College of Allied Health Sciences has more than 9,000 alumni in clinical, administrative, educational and service roles throughout the state of Tennessee and around the world.  The college is also the largest provider of allied health professionals in Tennessee, and draws students from around the United States and Europe.

Dr. Schwab noted, "I need also to express my gratitude and admiration to Dr. Barbara Connolly for the manner in which she has advanced the mission of the college during her time as interim dean.  She has been a real force for the college.  She will be greatly missed when she retires."  Dr. Connolly has announced her intention to retire at the end of June.

As the flagship statewide academic health system, the mission of the University of Tennessee Health Science Center is to bring the benefits of the health sciences to the achievement and maintenance of human health, with a focus on the citizens of Tennessee and the region, by pursuing an integrated program of education, research, clinical care, and public service.   Offering a broad range of postgraduate training opportunities, the main campus is located in Memphis and includes six colleges: Allied Health Sciences, Dentistry, Graduate Health Sciences, Medicine, Nursing and Pharmacy.  UTHSC has additional colleges of Medicine and Pharmacy plus an Allied Health Sciences unit in Knoxville, as well as a College of Medicine campus in Chattanooga.  For more information, visit www.uthsc.edu.

SOURCE University of Tennessee Health Science Center

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