New Roseman University dean will focus on medical school creation
Roseman University of Health Sciences announced Monday it has a new dean for its College of Medicine who will attempt to usher into existence a long-standing plan to open a medical school.
Dr. Pedro “Joe” Greer Jr. started on the job June 1, the private university said in a news release.
Roseman’s existing programs include colleges of pharmacy, nursing and dental medicine. It also offers a Master of Business Administration program in conjunction with its pharmacy and dental doctoral studies.
The inaugural class of students in Roseman’s medical doctor (MD) program is expected to enroll in fall 2024, university spokesman Jason Roth said in an email to the Review-Journal.
Roseman University plans to submit an accreditation application in 2021 to the Liaison Committee on Medical Education, the accrediting agency for schools granting medical doctor degrees in the United States and Canada, Roth said.
The Las Vegas Valley is already home to a couple of medical schools: UNLV and Touro University Nevada.
Greer was previously at Florida International University’s Herbert Wertheim College of Medicine in Miami, where he was professor of medicine, associate dean for community engagement and founding chair of the Department of Humanities, Health, and Society.
In that position, he developed an educational program to help train medical students in “the social determinants of health,” according to the release.
In a statement to the Review-Journal, Greer said developing a medical school provides the opportunity to “create change and implement a new vision” for medical education. “We aren’t trying to evolve from something, but rather are leveraging the innovation and entrepreneurial spirit of a relatively young institution,” he said.
Roseman President Renee Coffman described Greer as “a nationally and internationally recognized advocate for health equity.”
“He brings to Roseman and Nevada remarkable experience and expertise in spearheading the development of unique service-learning and community-dependent medical curriculum that prepares future physicians to address the social determinants of health, while simultaneously caring for individuals and communities through a household-centered approach to clinical care.”
Greer replaces Dr. Mark Penn, founding dean of Roseman’s College of Medicine, who was on the job from 2014 until August 2019, Roth said.
The university conducted an independent analysis in 2019 of its efforts to further the College of Medicine and consultants at Tripp Umbach “recommended that new leadership was needed,” Roth said.
The university decided to “discontinue our relationship with Dr. Penn” and move forward with a nationwide search for a new leader, he said.
On Monday, Roseman also announced four additional College of Medicine faculty members were hired — all of whom worked at the Florida medical school with Greer. They also started June 1.
Dr. Karin Esposito will be senior executive dean for academic and student affairs, Marin Gillis will be senior executive dean for faculty affairs and learning innovation, Luther Brewster will be senior executive dean for community health innovation and Cheryl Brewster will be senior executive dean for diversity, equity, and inclusion.
Roseman University of Health Sciences, founded in 1999, has about 1,500 students in Nevada and Utah. It’s based in Henderson but also has campuses in Summerlin — which houses the College of Medicine — and South Jordan, Utah.
Contact Julie Wootton-Greener at jgreener@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-2921. Follow @julieswootton on Twitter.