Welcome to the new Alumni Newsletter

Welcome to the new alumni newsletter for Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry alumni.

As we continue to find new ways to share news and information with you about the School and the success of our alumni, we have established this electronic newsletter. You can expect to receive it a few times over the course of the year. We hope you will find it interesting and informative and that you will begin to share your news and accomplishments with us so that we can include it in upcoming issues.

The next year will bring with it a number of events and activities for alumni. Plans are well underway for Homecoming 2013, taking place from September 27 to 29. During the weekend, we will once again be hosting our Gala dinner and dance event. This year, it will be held on Saturday, September 28 at the Hilton Hotel. We look forward to the evening when we will present the Alumni of Distinction Awards to the deserving recipients, as well as celebrate the many achievements of the School and our alumni.

Later in the fall, we will also be hosting our annual Leaders in Innovation Dinner as part of the J. Allyn Taylor Symposium. Hosting actor Alec Baldwin at the 2012 Leaders Dinner was definitely a highlight of the year, and we are currently finalizing our plans for yet another outstanding presentation.

The past year has been an exciting one for faculty, staff and students across the School as we began to implement the work needed to advance and achieve our many strategic plan goals.

Focussed on becoming a destination of choice for exceptional education and learning, we have worked tirelessly to develop and implement a number of new programs and support systems for our students.

Our hard work is making a difference.

This fall, two new programs welcomed their first classes. These included the newly accredited professional Pathology Assistant program, a unique program in Canada, it offers two years of study gaining specialized experience in this growing field. A new collaborative program in Musculoskeletal Health became home to 23 graduate students. This is Canada's only multidisciplinary musculoskeletal program. We are proud to join our colleagues in the faculties of Engineering, Health Sciences, Science and Social Science to offer unique and collaborative research and development opportunities for students in this area.

Several new graduate programs received approval in 2012 and are set to begin in 2013. This includes the Master of Public Health, offering students a unique opportunity to experience Canada's only, 12-month, case based, public health program. You will have a chance to read more about the program in the article in this newsletter. We are excited about the possibilities that it will offer.

Additional programs launching in 2013 include a Master of Surgery, Department of Surgery, an accelerated Master of Science in Microbiology and Immunology, a Master of Science, Clinical Medical Biophysics, as well as a combined Master of Science, Clinical Medical Biophysics and Doctor of Philosophy Program, Medical Biophysics and round out our latest graduate studies offerings. More programs are under development as we work to enhance the educational opportunities for our learners, regardless of the stage of their career.

Our continued success as a pre-eminent medical and dental school will no doubt depend on the strength and sustainability of our partnerships regionally, nationally and internationally. We are continuing to work diligently to establish the Southwestern Ontario Academic Health Sciences Network (SWAHN), one of only five such networks in Canada. This initiative is key to the success of our School and is a core mandate of the strategic plan.

Following the release of our White Paper on Globalization and Internationalization, Dr. John Denstedt, chair/chief, Department of Surgery assumed the role as the school's special advisor on internationalization, globalization and simulation. He will guide our efforts in establishing unique partnerships around the world.

Researchers across Schulich Medicine & Dentistry have led the way in delivering breakthrough discoveries which have profoundly changed health care around the world. We have numerous examples of this throughout our history. As a medical and dental school, we have now reached a critical juncture in addressing our research mission, and have identified significant goals to advance our programs.

Denise Figlewicz, vice-dean, Research & Innovation is leading a number of new initiatives identified through the Research Review Task Force. She is also developing strategies to realize new funding opportunities, build collaborations and foster translational research and commercialization. We believe these activities will strengthen our programs across the basic and clinical sciences.

The remainder of 2013 will be another year of new development for the School and we look forward to providing you with updates through this newsletter, our website and Rapport Magazine.

We invite you to provide us with feedback on this newsletter and share news of your own achievements. We will be sure to share them with your fellow alumni.