NEWS

Photo note: See end of story to download a photo of Houpt.

CHAPEL HILL -- Dr. Jeffrey L. Houpt today (May 19) announced that he will resign as dean of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Medicine and chief executive officer of the UNC Health Care System by next May after completion of a national search for his successor.

Houpt served 14 years as medical dean at two major universities – UNC and Emory – making him among the nation’s longest-serving medical school deans.

He was named medical school dean and vice chancellor for medical affairs at UNC in June 1997, and one year later was appointed chief executive officer of the UNC Health Care System by the UNC Board of Governors. In 2000, Rex Healthcare was purchased, making UNC Health Care one of the area’s largest health systems. With the opening of the N.C. Children’s and N.C. Women’s Hospitals, UNC Health Care has become the leader in women’s and children’s specialty care.

"Dr. Houpt has been essential to the creation and development of the UNC Health Care System and its growing importance to the state," said Molly Broad, president of the 16-campus University of North Carolina. "He has advocated tirelessly on behalf of quality health-care delivery for all North Carolinians and UNC’s historical role in fulfilling its attainment."

Said Chancellor James Moeser, "Jeff Houpt has positioned Carolina as a national leader in medicine and life sciences research. And he has done that with a constant focus on serving the State of North Carolina – through the education of future medical leaders and through research and health care that improves all of our lives."

During the dean’s six years at UNC, 23 department chairs and center directors were recruited. Among newly created units were a genetics department and the Carolina Center for Genome Sciences, which draws its membership from the entire university with an investment in growth and development of $245 million. National Institutes of Health funding to the medical school more than doubled during Houpt’s tenure, exceeding $190 million in fiscal 2003. Steady improvements in medical school aptitude test (MCAT) scores of matriculating students occurred, as well as significant gains in student selectivity

The revitalization of the medical school’s physical plant was another major accomplishment during this period. A complete renovation plan for the 1 million square feet of existing medical school space was put in place. New construction of 600,000 square feet for research and 100,000 square feet for office space was begun, with construction to be completed by 2008. Since October 2001, new buildings constructed and dedicated on the medical campus include the Neuroscience Research Building, Bioinformatics Building, and, in April, the Biomolecular Research Building.

Before coming to Carolina, Houpt was dean of Emory University School of Medicine, where, from 1983 to1988, he had been professor and chairman of the department of psychiatry. At Emory, he rapidly developed new clinical and research programs to address the field’s growing emphasis on biology and neuroscience. During his tenure as dean until 1996, federal research funding doubled and the school’s rank in NIH-funded research improved dramatically, from 38th to 20th among accredited U.S. medical schools. Emory’s medical school endowment also doubled, as did space available for research.

A board-certified psychiatrist, Houpt has advised or served on committees for the National Cancer Institute, the National Institute of Mental Health, the National Academy of Sciences, the American Psychiatric Association, the Association for Academic Psychiatry, the American College of Psychiatrists, the Association of American Medical Colleges, the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology and the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education.

He has been awarded numerous professional honors and has served as editorial consultant and editor for several scientific journals, including the Journal of the American Medical Association and the American Journal of Psychiatry. He is past president of the American College of Psychiatrists. The author of four books and co-author of more than 60 scientific articles, Houpt has served as principal investigator for National Institute of Mental Health studies.

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Photo URL: http://www.unc.edu/news/pics/faculty/deans/houpt_jeffery.jpg

UNC Health Care contact: Karen McCall, vice president of public affairs and marketing, (919) 966-4752; kmccall@unch.unc.edu