VCU School of Medicine

Region: Virginia Country: USA

About the school
Dr. Strauss in an interview.From our beginnings in 1838 to today, as part of a thriving urban comprehensive academic medical center, the Virginia Commonwealth University School of Medicine has maintained a reputation for excellence in teaching, research and health care.

Our tradition of excellence provides a foundation for innovation as we move into the 21st century.

Our Mission
The mission of the School of Medicine is to provide preeminent education to physicians and scientists in order to improve the quality of health care for humanity. Through innovative, scholarly activity and a diverse educational context, the School seeks to create and apply new knowledge, and to provide and continuously improve systems of medical and science education. Furthermore, it is our mission to develop more effective health care practices to address the needs of the diverse populations we serve, and to provide distinguished leadership in the advancement of medicine and science.

Our Strategic Plan
The strategic plan articulates the School's overreaching objectives to continue to lead our students, faculty and staff to excellence in the framework of a growing, dynamic, intellectually stimulating, creative, innovative, supportive and inclusive community. The plan reaffirms our vision of a strong and ongoing commitment to our mission and core values that will ensure diversity, equity and excellence in teaching, research, patient care and community engagement.

Our Teaching
More than 700 students from around the world come to the VCU School of Medicine to pursue their M.D. and learn from our renowned faculty, many of whom are nationally and internationally recognized, who represent more than 200 specialty areas.

The school also offers dozens of master's, doctoral and interdisciplinary programs that can be pursued in combination with M.D. degrees.

Some of these programs connect VCU to partner universities in Italy, India and England. Closer to home, 48 third- and fourth-year students train at Inova Fairfax Hospital in Northern Virginia, while the Virginia BioTechnology Research Park gives faculty and students an incubator to grow bioscience companies as well as research programs.

Our Research
The VCU School of Medicine accounts for almost half of VCU's sponsored research awards and for 87 percent of the university's National Institutes of Health funding. The school's $300 million-plus research strategic plan calls for an infusion of human capital and physical infrastructure that will invigorate a culture of scientific discovery.

Our Care
As part of the VCU Medical Center, we provide innovative care to patients from across Virginia as well as neighboring states. The largest single provider of indigent health care in the commonwealth, the medical center is the site for the region's only Level 1 Trauma Center and is recognized internationally for care in organ transplantation, head and spinal cord trauma, burn healing and cancer treatment.

School Directory
The School of Medicine directory provides contact information for current administration, department chairs with links to their department Web sites, dean's office staff and a link to our Faculty Expertise Directory. Using the Faculty Expertise Directory, you can search all School of Medicine faculty by department, by name or using keywords to locate faculty by their areas of research, clinical or teaching expertise.

Education
More than 700 students from around the world come to the VCU School of Medicine to pursue their M.D. and learn from our renowned faculty, who represent more than 200 specialty areas and many of whom are nationally and internationally recognized.

The school also offers dozens of master's, doctoral and interdisciplinary programs, which can be pursued in combination with M.D. degrees.

Some of these programs connect VCU to partner universities in Italy, India and England. Closer to home, 48 third- and fourth-year students train at Inova Fairfax Hospital in Northern Virginia, while the Virginia BioTechnology Research Park gives faculty and students an incubator to grow bioscience companies as well as research programs.

Research
Our commitment to research at the Virginia Commonwealth University School of Medicine is evident through our growing faculty size and graduate school enrollment, as well as the construction of new buildings to create more research space and expand critical core facilities.

In recent years, the school has seen a nearly 40 percent increase in the number of grants submitted to the National Institutes of Health and an increase in awarded NIH grant dollars during a time when many research institutions are seeing a decrease in funding.

The VCU School of Medicine now accounts for almost half of VCU's sponsored research awards and for 87 percent of the university's NIH funding.

Bricks and Mortar
A new Medical Sciences Building II-opening in 2009-along with the VCU Massey Cancer Center's Goodwin Research Building will give the school an additional 185,000 square feet of research space.

Both buildings are organized in an open lab format to encourage interdisciplinary collaboration in specific program areas. Coupled with the creation of the Center for Clinical and Translational Research, the expansion of research provides a foundation for increased translation of basic science into better treatments for patients.

Our Mission
The mission of the Office of the Associate Dean for Research is to:

Recruit outstanding research faculty and graduate research students seeking a Master's, Ph.D. or combined M.D./Ph.D. degree.
Manage research space.
Sponsor and mentor undergraduate and graduate student research.
Develop core research infrastructure.
Assist in grant preparation and submission.
Work with other associate deans on research curriculum development, faculty mentoring and research information technology.

The goal is to attract, support and empower the best possible research faculty and students.