Installation events for Chancellor Jeffrey Gold to focus on UNMC’s excellence, impact

“From Excellence to Eminence” is the theme for the installation of the eighth chancellor of the University of Nebraska Medical Center, Jeffrey P. Gold, M.D. Members of the university community, Omaha city leaders, UNMC partners and others will celebrate Dr. Gold’s installation Sept. 4-5 with activities including a formal public ceremony and campus reception that will highlight UNMC’s current momentum and opportunities to continue serving Nebraskans and people around the world.

Interim University of Nebraska President James Linder, M.D., will preside over the Sept. 5 ceremony and make remarks. The keynote speaker is James B. Milliken, President Emeritus of the University of Nebraska. Milliken stepped down from his NU role in January to become chancellor of The City University of New York, the nation’s leading public urban university. Dr. Gold also will make remarks.

Members of the media are encouraged to attend the installation ceremony, which begins at 10:30 a.m. in the Witherspoon Concert Hall at the Joslyn Art Museum, 2200 Dodge St. in Omaha. Chancellor Gold, Linder and Milliken will be available for interviews at 9 a.m. in the Executive Conference Room in the lower level of the Joslyn. Immediately following the ceremony, a public reception will be held in the Storz Fountain Court.

Dignitaries scheduled to offer greetings during the ceremony include:

• Omaha Mayor Jean Stothert
• Bruce Lauritzen, chairman of First National Bank
• NU Board of Regents Vice Chairman Bob Phares of North Platte
• Gay Canaris, M.D., assistant professor and president of the UNMC Faculty Senate
• Regent Krupa Savalia, Ph.D., president of the UNMC Student Senate
• James Reilly Jr., M.D., immediate past president of the UNMC Alumni Association and a surgeon at Methodist Physicians Clinic in Omaha
  
  

“Jeff Gold is deeply knowledgeable, highly regarded and, most importantly, he is passionate about the important role UNMC plays in ensuring Nebraskans’ health and well-being,” said Linder, who chaired the search process that led to Dr. Gold’s selection. “Nebraska is fortunate to have him, and we look forward to celebrating his installation with our university colleagues and friends from Omaha and around the state. Chancellor Gold has begun to accelerate UNMC’s momentum, which already was at a high level. I’m excited to see where he, the faculty and staff take the institution in the years ahead.”

Dr. Gold, a nationally recognized leader and advocate for transforming academic medical education, became UNMC chancellor on Feb. 1. As UNMC’s chief executive officer, Dr. Gold is responsible for all aspects of campus administration, including an annual operating budget of more than $640 million, a staff of about 5,000 and a student body of nearly 3,700.

Prior to joining UNMC, Dr. Gold was chancellor of the University of Toledo’s health science campus. In that role, he had full leadership responsibility for the clinical, education and research programs, the faculty practice plan and the clinical delivery system. Previously, Dr. Gold served at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine and the Weill Cornell Medical College. He is a board-certified thoracic surgeon and specializes in adult and pediatric cardiac surgery.

Dr. Gold has served on more than 50 professional committees and 100 national organizations, volunteer boards and government and public health councils. He was recently elected to the American Medical Association’s Council on Medical Education and has served as president of the Thoracic Surgery Directors Association, a national organization devoted to improving the education of resident physicians. Dr. Gold has authored more than 200 peer-reviewed articles and 40 books and chapters.

In his first seven months, Dr. Gold has focused extensively on engaging with key constituents, including faculty and staff, UNMC partners and supporters, and community leaders around the state. He is a tireless advocate for the communities served by UNMC, taking a strong stand to build the future.

UNMC’s campus also is continuing its unprecedented physical growth; new facilities underway include the Fred & Pamela Buffett Cancer Center, which will transform cancer care and research in Nebraska, and the Health Science Education Complex on the University of Nebraska at Kearney campus, which will expand UNMC nursing and allied health programs for the benefit of rural Nebraska.

UNMC also is in the midst of a historic integration of a newly formed clinical enterprise, chaired by Dr. Gold, which includes UNMC’s primary hospital partner, The Nebraska Medical Center; its physician group, UNMC Physicians; and the Bellevue Medical Center.

In addition to its focus on serving Nebraskans, UNMC also is committed to improving human health around the world; the campus recently celebrated 10 years of successful engagement in China and continues to explore opportunities to work with colleagues and institutions around the world to develop solutions to complex health-related challenges.

Formerly the Omaha Medical College, UNMC became affiliated with the University of Nebraska in 1902. Over the years, programs in nursing, pharmacy, dentistry, public health and other key fields have been added. Today UNMC has divisions in Omaha, Lincoln, Norfolk, Kearney and Scottsbluff.

Dr. Gold succeeds Chancellor Emeritus Harold Maurer, M.D., who served from 1998 to 2014.