Update on the Vagelos Institute for Biomedical Research Education

Dear Colleagues,

One of the most striking aspects of the VP&S academic medical community is the depth and breadth of our commitment to biomedical education. Tracing back to our founding as the King’s College medical faculty before the Revolutionary War, VP&S has long been known worldwide for its outstanding medical education and extraordinary teachers. This commitment to teaching and training the next generation is evident across VP&S today, from the outstanding lectures in our graduate school courses, to the best-in-class Revisit Day video produced by our first-year medical students (that you should make the time to watch here), to innovative programs like the Apgar Academy of Medical Educators that was founded to promote, reward, and support outstanding education in the medical school and has just welcomed its most recent inductees.

The latest visionary gift from Roy and Diana Vagelos earlier this year inaugurated the next major chapter in education at VP&S. Building on the transformation of medical education that Roy and Diana made possible through their scholarship gift and the construction of the Vagelos Education Center, the new Vagelos Institute for Biomedical Research Education will focus on education and training in the sciences, including our graduate programs and physician-scientist pathway. Even as I write today to report on some of the initial steps we will be taking, I want to recognize the many faculty and staff who have been dedicated to graduate programs and physician-scientist training at VP&S for decades and to great effect.

So many of the conversations I have had over the last months have highlighted the critical importance of graduate students to our scientific community today and to our impact on science in the future, as well as the innovative approaches that are being taken in several of the programs to optimize the student experience. At the same time, I have learned about multiple existing initiatives to advance physician-scientist careers at VP&S and the deep commitment to this mission in the Irving Institute/CTSA and our clinical departments. Many early career faculty have reached out to me to share their experiences and emphasize how critical these initiatives are for our future and how eager they are to participate in their success. These conversations have also emphasized the importance of continuing to advance our commitment to diversity, inclusion and belonging across our educational programs. There is little doubt that efforts like the Graduate Initiative in Diversity contributed to the recent news that our incoming graduate student class has the highest proportion of students from underrepresented backgrounds and the highest yield in VP&S history.

Informed by this wealth of institutional knowledge and the insights of a Department of Medicine ad-hoc committee chaired by Ali Gharavi, the next steps in the development of the Vagelos Institute physician-scientist pathway will be guided by three key principles: the importance of a comprehensive, longitudinal approach, the ability to provide additional support at critical points in that trajectory, and the value of a multidisciplinary governance structure with a committed leader. Building upon those principles, we have decided to create a new position to oversee the development and implementation of the physician-scientist pathway in the Vagelos Institute. The job description for that position is being developed and I will follow up with more information in the coming weeks.

Simultaneously, we are moving forward with a parallel effort to redesign our graduate programs in the biomedical sciences. I have convened two complementary taskforce groups, one examining the current state of VP&S graduate programs led by Art Palmer and Yinghui Mao, and another led by Hashim Al-Hashimi to explore innovative directions for the future of our programs. Reports emerging from this work will be reviewed and synthesized by our basic science department chairs, the Scientific Research Advisory Committee, and the members of the new Vagelos Institute external advisory board announced in March. These advisory board members will be visiting us in the fall for structured discussions about our evolving programs. Currently, we anticipate that this evolution will include several phases that will begin next academic year.  

One of my favorite experiences of the last year was participating in commencement activities across the medical center. As our campus gears up for these celebrations again, I am grateful to be able to take this major step forward in our educational programs and I look forward to working with you to realize the possibilities that are in front of us.

All my best,

Katrina Armstrong, MD
Dean of the Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons
Executive Vice President for Health and Biomedical Sciences, Columbia University