As part of an ongoing pursuit to improve the academic experience for faculty and students, the George Washington University School of Medicine and Health Sciences (SMHS) is pleased to announce two new strategic developments — a consolidated Office of Student Support that will serve as a school-wide resource and a collaborative effort for evaluation and enhancement of academic programming.
Under the leadership of Rhonda M. Goldberg, MA, associate dean for student affairs at SMHS, and in partnership with Lorenzo Norris, MD, associate dean for student affairs and administration and associate professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences at SMHS, the new school-wide Office of Student Support will provide the highest quality academic and personal support for every SMHS student. The office will foster interprofessionalism and expand scholarship in the areas of academic success, well-being, and inclusive learning communities. The Office of Student Support team will include Patrick Corr, MEd, director of student programs at SMHS; and Nickolas Atlas, MA, senior academic advisor at SMHS, as well as supplemental instructors and writing tutors. Karen Wright, PhD, leaves her role as assistant dean for student life and academic support for health sciences and continues her leadership as director of the Physician Assistant (PA) Program and assistant professor of PA studies.
"We know that creating a combined and enhanced office that is dedicated to the social, emotional, and academic well-being of our students is central to the success of the school. The COVID-19 pandemic highlights the importance of highly coordinated, interdisciplinary teams in health care, and this new effort further solidifies our commitment to embedding interprofessionalism and collaboration throughout our students’ educational journeys in SMHS," said Reamer L. Bushardt, PharmD, PA-C, DFAAPA, senior associate dean for health sciences at SMHS.
SMHS has also consolidated and is strengthening efforts in educational research and program evaluation, under the leadership of Anthony Artino, PhD, who will serve as interim associate dean for evaluation and educational research at SMHS. Artino will work toward the long-term goal of advancing knowledge and increasing the visibility of health professions education research conducted at SMHS. This goal will be realized by building educational research capacity, constructing longitudinal datasets, engaging clinician-educators as contributors to educational research projects, mentoring students and faculty on scholarly innovation projects, and disseminating results to influence health professions education and practice nationally and internationally. Linking educational evaluation processes and scholarship in teaching and learning is a proven strategy for success, and one that we are rapidly expanding in SMHS.
The nationally and internationally recognized AskIQ team includes senior systems analyst Janessa Silcox and data analysts Maggie Zhu and Nahoemi Pablo. Catherine Golden, EdD, associate dean for academic affairs at SMHS, leads the AskIQ team and its numerous quality initiatives. AskIQ will now support both the medical and health sciences programs, through routine analysis, reporting, infographic creation, and quality improvement projects. Additionally, the team will provide high-quality tools to support program accreditation needs as well as curriculum evaluation and innovation. Earlier this month, the AskIQ team began collaborating with Artino and Stephanie Sarandos, associate program director for medical education evaluation, to advance rigorous evaluation and continuous improvement in the MD program.
"The formation of this highly skilled team brings together nationally renowned talent and innovative tools, with a track record of success, to review and revise our programming to ensure educational rigor and excellence, which is vital to the growing portfolio at SMHS," said Rich Simons, MD, senior associate dean for MD Programs at SMHS.
These changes were effective July 1, 2020.
