Lee A. Learman, a physician, researcher, and educator, has been named the next dean of the Virginia Tech Carilion School of Medicine following a nationwide search.
Learman will begin in the role July 1. He will also be professor in the medical school’s Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology.
“Lee has distinguished himself as an outstanding leader in the fields of medicine and higher education and brings a wealth of experience to the Virginia Tech Carilion School of Medicine (VTCSOM),” said Cyril Clarke, provost of Virginia Tech and co-chair of the VTCSOM dean search committee. “His perspectives and vision for the future of the medical school and how it integrates with and advances Virginia Tech’s land-grant mission clearly made him the best choice to lead our students and faculty. I look forward to working together with Lee and his leadership team to create new opportunities for our institution, community partners, and the Commonwealth of Virginia.”
“Dr. Learman is extremely well-qualified and has made significant contributions to medical education, research, and clinical care,” said Patrice M. Weiss, executive vice president and chief medical officer of Carilion Clinic, who was co-chair of the dean search committee. “We could not be more delighted about his appointment and everything he will bring to this new chapter for the medical school.”
Learman has 25 years of progressive leadership experience in medical education and health care. He currently serves as the senior associate dean for academic affairs and the senior associate dean for graduate medical education at the Florida Atlantic University’s Charles E. Schmidt College of Medicine, where he is also the designated institutional official and a tenured professor of obstetrics and gynecology. FAU is a newer medical school, having opened for its first class in 2011, one year after the Virginia Tech Carilion School of Medicine.
“I’m honored by the opportunity to serve as dean of the Virginia Tech Carilion School of Medicine. In its first decade of existence, it has built a solid foundation drawing on the strengths of both an outstanding public research university and an outstanding private health system,” said Learman. “This unique public-private partnership makes Virginia Tech Carilion School of Medicine uniquely positioned to prepare future physicians for the changing health care landscape and to become a national leader in medical education. And now, as the newest college of Virginia Tech, the medical school is poised to develop new collaborations with the university.”
“With his experience as a physician, researcher, and academic leader, Dr. Learman is an ideal choice to lead the VTCSOM, and we look forward to welcoming him to Virginia Tech,” said Virginia Tech President Tim Sands. “The medical school is a critical part of the Virginia Tech Carilion Academic Health Center and the university’s overall vision to improve the quality of life in the communities we serve and solve the complex problems of the future.”
“We’re excited to welcome Dr. Learman to the Virginia Tech Carilion family,” said Nancy Howell Agee, president and CEO of Carilion Clinic. “His extensive experience makes him a great match for us, and I’m confident he’ll continue the momentum we began with Dean Johnson.”
Prior to FAU, Learman was at Indiana University, where he served as the Clarence E. Ehrlich Professor and Chair of the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology from 2008 to 2015. He was awarded the Commissioner’s Award for Excellence in Public Health by the Indiana State Department of Health in 2015 for his participation in statewide efforts to improve perinatal care. Before Indiana, Learman served 14 years on the faculty at the University of California San Francisco, where he held a joint appointment in the Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics and was inducted into the UCSF Academy of Medical Educators.
Learman has authored more than 75 peer-reviewed publications, including award-winning clinical research papers and contributions to the AAMC MedEdPORTAL. His research focuses on gynecology, obstetrics, and medical education. He serves as peer reviewer to more than 15 journals, including Academic Medicine, and recently co-authored an invited editorial in JAMA that provided an overview of new USPSTF recommendations for cervical cancer screening. In his medical practice, Learman focuses on diagnosing and treating chronic pelvic pain.
“We are very fortunate that Dr. Lee Learman will be joining us to lead the VTCSOM. He has impeccable credentials in the academic medicine community and is recognized as a highly collaborative and innovative leader in medical education. I greatly look forward to working with him and continuing to grow the already strong collaborative partnership between the Fralin Biomedical Research Institute and the Virginia Tech Carilion School of Medicine,” said Michael Friedlander, vice president of health sciences and technology for Virginia Tech and founding executive director of the Fralin Biomedical Research Institute. “We are very fortunate to have had such an outstanding founding dean for the medical school in Cynda Johnson and now to follow her with such an accomplished leader as Dr. Learman as we grow into our next phase.”
Learman currently serves in multiple national service roles with the American Board of Obstetrics and Gynecology, the Association of Professors of Gynecology and Obstetrics, and the Society for Academic Specialists in General Obstetrics and Gynecology. He is former chair of the Council on Resident Education in Obstetrics and Gynecology and a past member of the ACGME Review Committee for Obstetrics and Gynecology.
In addition, he serves on the Evidence-based Medicine Interdisciplinary Review Committee for the USMLE/NBME as well as the MedEdPORTAL Content Research Group for the Association of American Medical Colleges.
Learman received his bachelor’s degree from the University of California Los Angeles, his M.D. from Harvard Medical School, and a Ph.D. in social psychology from Harvard University in a program supported by the MacArthur Foundation. He completed his residency in obstetrics and gynecology at the University of California Los Angeles.
