Kevin C. Bergquist

Lab Swap events held over three days on the medical campus and at the North Campus Research Complex (NCRC) kept more than 1,700 pounds of supplies out of landfills and allowed research teams to save more than $90,000 compared to buying new. Sponsored by the U-M Office of Campus Sustainability (OCS) and Medical School Facilities, the annual Lab Swap events support U-M’s waste reduction efforts by allowing research staff to donate surplus lab supplies — lightly used, non-expired lab materials, consumables, glassware, and small equipment — that can be used by other staff.

On May 15, the University of Michigan Board of Regents approved promotions for more than 200 Medical School faculty members. Their new appointments take effect Aug. 25, 2025.

Many of our graduating medical students brought strong leadership skills with them to campus. Others have developed them through a flexible curriculum that has prepared them to be leaders and change agents in medicine. How, when and why they demonstrate leadership varies, but the featured speaker at the Medical School Commencement Ceremony on May 16 in Hill Auditorium told 163 graduating medical students that their leadership is welcome during a time of great turmoil in health care.

Shirlene Obuobi, M.D., is a cardiologist, cartoonist and author and shares her advice for the next generation of doctors.

Louito C. Edje, M.D., MHPE, FAAP, is recipient of the ELUM Compass Award, a special award given as part of the Executive Leadership in Academic Medicine (ELAM) program’s 30th anniversary celebration. ELAM is a prestigious national leadership fellowship for women which aims to increase and sustain the number and impact of women in leadership positions in the health sciences.

Lives are being saved, and many others are being changed dramatically, by current GLP-1 therapies like tirzepatide, which has helped many patients treat type 2 diabetes and sleep apnea, and also lose weight. It has been a long road from bench research to clinical trials to the health care market, but patients are now benefitting more than ever, according to a leading scientist who served as the keynote speaker for the second annual Dean’s Lecture and Bold Science Symposium, “Metabolism Research from Bench to Bedside.” Daniel Skovronsky, M.D., Ph.D., chief scientific officer and executive vice president of science and technology at Eli Lilly and Company and president of Research Laboratories and Lilly Immunology, was the Dean’s Lecturer on April 14 at the North Campus Research Complex Dining Hall.

Three Medical School faculty members are among a group of 50 nationwide to receive Young Physician-Scientist Awards from the American Society for Clinical Investigation. Nora V. Becker, M.D., Ph.D., an assistant professor of internal medicine in the Division of General Medicine; Wassim Walid Labaki, M.D., M.S., an assistant professor of internal medicine in the Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine; and John R. Prensner, M.D., Ph.D., an assistant professor of pediatrics and biological chemistry, are recipients of the annual award, which recognizes physician-scientists who are within 1-5 years of their first faculty appointment and have made notable achievements in their research.

The University of Michigan Medical School and Medical Student Council have announced that Ghanian-American cardiologist, cartoonist, and author Shirlene Obuobi, M.D., will deliver the 2025 Commencement address. The ceremony will be 3-5 p.m. on May 16 in Hill Auditorium.

If biomedical science is to survive, researchers must communicate better about the discoveries and promise of science and medicine, as well as their complexities and limits, and the critical importance of both in serving the public good. Such communication is necessary in times of crisis, like now, according to Huda Akil, Ph.D., one of the Medical School’s top biomedical researchers, both in longevity (47 years at the U-M) and success (2023 recipient of the National Medal of Science). She delivered the keynote address at the third annual Celebration of Women in Academic Medicine and Science on Feb. 5.

Ronald D. Chervin, M.D., M.S., has been appointed assistant dean for clinical research in the Medical School, effective March 10. In this role, Chervin will be a part of the Medical School Office of Research leadership team, overseeing the mission, policies, and operations of the Clinical Trials Support Office to achieve the vision of a robust and supportive environment for conducting clinical trials at Michigan Medicine.

Helen K. Morgan, M.D., a clinical professor of obstetrics and gynecology and learning health sciences, has been appointed faculty chair-elect for women’s careers in the Medical School. The chair-elect is one of several new Medical School roles developed during the past year that focus on the advancement — and overall thriving — of women pursuing careers in academic medicine and science at Michigan Medicine. Morgan will become chair in January 2026, and after her term is complete, she will serve in an advisory role as post-chair in 2028-29

Lisa H. Harris, M.D., Ph.D., has been appointed inaugural director of the Center for History, Humanities, Arts, and Social Sciences in Medicine in the Medical School (UMMS) — an expansion and reinvigoration of the Center for the History of Medicine that links disciplines and reflects the evolving nature of medicine, health care, and physicians’ role in society. The center connects several existing UMMS structures and activities, including the Center for Bioethics and Social Sciences in Medicine (CBSSM); Program on Health, Spirituality and Religion; Medical Student Paths of Excellence in Medical Humanities and Ethics; and the Medical Arts Program

Sixteen faculty and staff, and members of the Comprehensive Stroke Program, were honored Dec. 4 at the annual Faculty and Staff Awards ceremony at the Jack Roth Stadium Club in Michigan Stadium. The awards acknowledge and celebrate those who demonstrate exceptional accomplishment in the areas of teaching, research, clinical care, community service, technology, leadership, teamwork and administration

The National Academy of Inventors has selected U-M faculty members Robert H. Bartlett, M.S., FACS, and Zhen Xu, Ph.D., as fellows, the highest professional distinction awarded solely to inventors. They were nominated for being innovative researchers with extensive work translating discoveries into new products and technologies that are addressing some of the world’s greatest challenges

Two Medical School leaders are being honored for their efforts to help women forge successful careers in academic medicine and science. Sally A. Camper, Ph.D., and Lori J. Pierce, M.D., will receive the Karin Muraszko, M.D., Advancing Women in Academic Medicine and Science Award on Feb. 5 at the third annual Celebration of Women in Academic Medicine and Science.