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Tag: Office of Faculty Enrichment & Engagement

Alumni Association Awards Dinner will be April 6.

Alumni Association Awards Dinner

Join us as we CELEBRATE 50 YEARS of creating transformational leaders at the 2024 NEOMED Alumni Association Awards Dinner.Saturday, April 6, 20245:30 p.m., Cocktail Reception6:45 p.m., DinnerNEW Center Ballroom | NEOMED Campus4211 St. Rt. 44, Rootstown, OH 44272$50 per person | Includes cocktail hour, dinner, dessert and coffee | Reserve seats

See who will be honored.

Make a reservation.For additional information, contact Eric Eickhoff at eeickhoff@neomed.edu.

The Chatrchai Watanakunakorn, M.D., Lectureship in Medicine

Keith Armitage, M.D., professor of medicine in the Division of Infectious Diseases at Case Western Reserve University, will present “Travel Medicine 2024” from noon to 1 p.m. Wednesday, April 3, in Watanakunakorn Auditorium on the NEOMED campus. The seminar is the 2024 Chatrchai Watanakunakorn, M.D., Lectureship in Medicine. No registration is required. Lunch will be provided.

If you are unable to attend in person, the lecture will be available via Zoom as well. Password: 738237.

Biography

Dr. Armitage is a professor of medicine in the Division of Infectious Diseases at Case Western Reserve University and is the vice chair for education and residency director in the Department of Internal Medicine at University Hospitals. He serves as the medical director for the Roe Green Center for Travel Medicine and Global Health. His primary professional focus has been on postgraduate medical education, clinical infectious diseases and travel medicine.

Dr. Armitage earned his undergraduate degree from the University of Kansas and attended medical school at the University of Colorado. He completed his internship and residency in internal medicine and infectious diseases fellowship at Case Western Reserve University and University Hospitals of Cleveland. He served as Chief Resident in the Department of Medicine 1991-1992 and joined the faculty at Case Western in 1992.

Dr. Armitage has served as the president of the Association of Program Directors in Internal Medicine and Chair of the Organization of Program Directors Associations. He has been active in the Ohio Chapter of the American College of Physicians for a number of years. He is currently on the board of the national Residency Matching Program (NRMP). In 2002, he received the Parker J. Palmer Award from the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medicine Education. In 2019, he received the Dema Daley Founders Award from the Academic Alliance for Internal Medicine, and also became a Master of the American College of Physicians.

His research interests include the process of care in community-acquired pneumonia, travel medicine ad outcomes in graduate medical education.

Memorial service for Robert Liebelt, M.D., NEOMED’s first College of Medicine dean

Northeast Ohio Medical University will honor and celebrate the life of Robert Liebelt, M.D., with a memorial service from 2:30 – 4 p.m. Saturday, March 16, in the atrium outside of Watanakunakorn Auditorium on the NEOMED campus, 4211 State Route 44 in Rootstown. The public is invited.

Dr. Liebelt, NEOMED’s first College of Medicine dean, was instrumental in building the former Northeastern Ohio Universities College of Medicine (NEOUCOM) during his tenure as the first dean. He was also the first to hold the dual role of dean and provost.

Dr. Liebelt had a reputation as an outstanding communicator, skills that helped him to bring together local universities, hospitals and business leaders to buy into the new medical school and its vision.

Dr. Liebelt referred to himself as NEOMED’s “construction manager” in the early years, as he recruited and hired faculty, developed the curriculum, and worked to increase admissions as well as consortium hospital affiliations.

A highlight of Dr. Liebelt’s tenure was overseeing the University’s first commencement and conferring degrees to the charter class of 1981. Along with the help of a few others, Dr. Liebelt officiated over the presentation of Doctor of Medicine degrees to the 42 graduates at the ceremony in E.J. Thomas Hall in Akron.

Just over a year later, in September 1982, Dr. Liebelt retired from NEOMED upon accepting a new challenge as vice president of medical education at St. Thomas Hospital in Akron.

Dr. Liebelt died Dec. 16, 2023. He was 96.


Contact: David Vitatoe, senior director of alumni relations, dvitatoe@neomed.edu.

The exterior of NEOMED on a rainy day.

Seminar: ‘Cerebral Vasculopathy and Depressive Symptoms with Metabolic Disease: The Impact of Sex and Informed Interventions’

Jefferson Frisbee, Ph.D., FAHA, FAPS, the Ting Yim Lee Endowed Chair and Professor in the Department of Medical Biophysics, Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry at Western University in London, Ontario, Canada, will present “Cerebral Vasculopathy and Depressive Symptoms with Metabolic Disease: The Impact of Sex and Informed Interventions” at 11 a.m. Tuesday, Dec. 5, in RGE-123. The talk is part of the Integrative Medical Sciences Seminar Series.

The exterior of NEOMED on a rainy day.

Seminar: Cardiovascular Diseases Associated with SARS-CoV2 and HIV Infections

Xuebin Qin, M.D., Ph.D., professor of medicine at Tulane National Primate Research Center, part of the Tulane University School of Medicine, will present, “Cardiovascular Diseases Associated with SARS-CoV2 and HIV Infections” at 11 a.m. Tuesday, Oct. 3 in RGE-123.

The talk, part of the Integrative Medical Sciences Seminar Series, is free and open to the public. If you have any questions, please send an email to epolcyn@neomed.edu.

Jessica Sublett, chief executive of Bounce Innovation Hub.

VITALS with Jessica Sublett, president and chief executive of Bounce Innovation Hub

Jessica Sublett, J.D., LLM, president and chief executive officer of Bounce Innovation Hub in Akron, will be the VITALS speaker from noon to 1 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 11 via Zoom.

The talk, free and open to all, will be moderated by Monica Robins, WKYC-TV’s senior health correspondent.

Register for Jessica Sublett’s talk.


Biography

Jessica Sublett is passionate about technology, innovation and entrepreneurship and has dedicated her career to supporting entrepreneurs and economic development in Northeast Ohio. In May 2022, the Bounce Innovation Hub Board of Directors unanimously named Jessica as the next President & Chief Executive Officer of the organization beginning January 1, 2023.

In the role of president and CEO at Bounce Innovation Hub, Sublett is responsible for overseeing the vision and strategic direction of the organization. Sublett is responsible for developing and implementing fundraising strategies, overseeing finances and budgets, developing partnerships and collaborations with other organizations, and advocating for the organization’s mission and objectives in the broader community. Overall, Sublett plays a crucial role in setting the direction and vision of the organization, driving growth and financial sustainability and ensuring its long-term success.

Prior to being named CEO, Sublett served as Chief Operating Officer at Bounce from January 2018-December 2022. As COO, Sublett’s work focused on ensuring that the organization had the wherewithal to execute on its strategic plan. Between 2018-2022, she led the organization’s efforts to secure over $6.4M in public grant funds and $1.75M in private grant funds to sustain the organization’s program operations and financial well-being. In addition, she was deeply involved in corporate development, which, combined with grant funds, supported a total 5-year contribution amount of over $10.5M. She was responsible for creating and executing the rental model for the incubator and coworking facility, which generated an additional $4M in those same 5 years.

Sublett led programming structure and team development to implement and execute on programmatic priorities and strategic initiatives, where she was instrumental in launching Bounce’s Technology Incubator Program, Software Accelerator Program, and GROW Program. She worked closely with entrepreneurs, stakeholders, and community partners to ensure that programming offered by Bounce effectuated positive economic impact in the community. As COO, she oversaw the daily operations of the organization, which included community impact reporting; financial forecasting and management; HR management; strategic plan execution and reporting; governance and compliance activities; programming oversight; facility management; and resource development. In 2020, she oversaw the strategic planning process for the organization, which culminated in Bounce’s first three-year strategic plan.

As a licensed attorney in Ohio, Sublett uses her background in technology transfer and intellectual property law to help shape programming that supports the region’s most innovative startups and is keenly focused on developing and building inclusive entrepreneurial ecosystems. She works closely with other entrepreneurial support organizations to build partnerships that ensure that entrepreneurship is accessible to all of community members.

Sublett earned her J.D. and a certificate in intellectual property from the University of Akron School of Law, her LL.M in Intellectual Property from the University of Akron School of Law, and her B.S. in Business Management from the University of Findlay. She held many leadership positions throughout her academic career, including president of the Intellectual Property and Technology Law Association at the University of Akron, vice president of the Student Bar Association at the University of Akron, vice president of the Sports and Entertainment Law Society at the University of Akron, and president of the Student Chapter of the Society of Human Resource Management at the University of Findlay. Sublett is a graduate of Leadership Akron’s Signature Class 38, a 2021 Greater Akron Chamber 30 For the Future award recipient, a 2023 Crain’s Cleveland Business Forty under 40 award recipient, and a quarterly contributor to Smart Business Magazine.

Chatrchai Watanakunakorn, M.D., Lectureship in Medicine

For the 2023 Chatrchai Watanakunakorn, M.D., Lectureship in Medicine, Michael Tan, M.D., (’99), FACP, FIDSA will present “Evolution of Treatment of C. difficile Infection” from noon to 1 p.m. Wednesday, April 5 in Watanakunakorn Auditorium and via Zoom.

Dr. Tan is professor of internal medicine at NEOMED, where he is co-course director of the Infection and Immunity Course and vice-chair of the Infectious Disease Section of the Principles of Medicine Course.

Dr. Tan is lead physician for Summa Health Medical Group-Infectious Disease, assistant medical director at SummaCare and chair of Summa Health’s Institutional Review Board.

Dr. Tan is board certified in infectious diseases and internal medicine. He earned a B.S. in cell and developmental biology from the University of Rochester and a medical degree from NEOMED. He completed his residency training at Summa Health System. He then completed a fellowship in infectious diseases and tropical medicine at the University of South Florida in Tampa.

He is a practicing infectious disease specialist and a frequent lecturer on various infectious disease topics. In addition to clinical practice, he is co-director of the antimicrobial stewardship programs at Summa Health’s hospitals and is elective director for M3 and M4 students as well as preceptor for advanced practice nursing students and physician assistants. He has significant involvement in resident education and has received teaching awards from internal medicine and family medicine residents.

Dr. Tan is a Fellow of the American College of Physicians (ACP) and Fellow of the Infectious Diseases Society of America. He is regent for the American College of Physicians and immediate past-Governor for the Ohio Chapter of the ACP. In addition, he is chair of the Mastership Committee and member of the Health and Public Policy Committee. He was a member of the IM2019 Scientific Program Committee, Credentials Committee 2019-2021, Chapters Subcommittee 2015-2019, and Chair of the Chapters Subcommittee 2017-2019, and Awards committee 2020-2021. While Governor, he was on the Executive Committee of the Board of Governors 2017-2019.

Dr. Tan’s primary research interests include participation in multi-centered controlled trials of new and novel treatments for Clostridium difficile infection, skin and soft tissue infection, and pneumonia. He is principal investigator for a registry of COVID-19 patients at Summa Health. He is co-editor of Tan JS, File TM Jr., Salata RA, Tan MJ (eds.) Expert Guide to Infectious Diseases, 2nd edition (2008, ACP Press) and Rosenthal KS and Tan MJ (eds.) Rapid Review Microbiology and Immunology 3rd edition (2010, Mosby). Dr. Tan is listed in Best Doctors in America (2010 to present).


About Chatrchai Watanakunakorn, M.D.

On March 5, 2004, the family of the late Dr. Watanakunakorn, of Youngstown, Ohio, presented NEOMED with the then-largest charitable gift in the College’s 30-year history. Totaling more than $3 million, the gift is used to advance medical education in Northeast Ohio, create an endowed chair in microbiology and immunology in Dr. Watanakunakorn’s name and provide this lectureshipseries for health care professionals throughout the region. From 1979 to 2001, Watanakunakorn, served as a professor of internal medicine at the University.

At the time of his death in July 2001, Dr. Watanakunakorn was hospital epidemiologist and chief of infectious diseases at St. Elizabeth Health Center in Youngstown. He received several awards from professional organizations, including the Ohio Chapter of the American College of Physicians Master Teacher Award, The American College of International Physicians Distinguished Physician Award, and the Infectious Disease Society of America 2000 Clinician Award. He also was a master of the American College of Physicians.


Contact

For more information, please email Aeriole Conner at aconner@neomed.edu.

VITALS with Sara Whittingham, M.D., an anesthesiologist and Ironman finisher with Parkinson’s disease

Sara Whittingham, M.D., an anesthesiologist at Cleveland Clinic Marymount, a clinical faculty member at NEOMED and an Ironman finisher with Parkinson’s disease, joins the next VITALS | Visionary Health Leadership in Action, NEOMED’s monthly health leadership speaker series supported by University Hospitals. The program will be held at noon, Thursday, April 4, in person in Watanakunakorn Auditorium and via Zoom.

The talk, free and open to all, will be moderated by Monica Robins, WKYC-TV’s senior health correspondent.

Secure your seat

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