Pamela B. Davis, MD, PhD, dean and senior vice president for Medical Affairs at Case Western Reserve School of Medicine, has been elected chair-elect of the Medical Sciences section of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS).
AAAS, the world’s largest general scientific society, is an international non-profit with 261 affiliated organizations, serving 10 million individuals. This proactive, probing Washington, D.C.-based group addresses science-related issues with global impact through magazine articles, op-eds, public statements, letters to Congress and newspaper and television interviews.
AAAS also produces Science, a weekly peer-reviewed general science publication with more than one million readers. AAAS also publishes Science Translational Medicine and Science Signaling.
Davis, a renowned physician and medical researcher noted for her exceptional leadership skills, will assume a three-year term as a Medical Section leader starting in February. Her election was announced in today’s edition of Science.
Davis’ career has reflected the goals of AAAS—promoting cooperation among scientists, defending scientific freedom, encouraging scientific responsibility and supporting scientific education and outreach.
“I’m honored to be selected, and feel confident that working with the AAAS will enhance my roles as an educator, dean and researcher,” said Davis, School of Medicine dean since 2007. “This position gives me a wonderful opportunity to fulfill my personal and professional commitment to keep medical science and scientific achievements and concerns front and center in our society.”
The Medical Sciences section is one of 24 AAAS committees focusing on a specific science-related concern. During her term, Davis will serve as chair-elect (2014-15), chair (2015-16) and retiring chair (2016-17). Although her responsibilities will vary slightly from year to year, Davis will attend and eventually preside at business meetings and planning sessions. She will also suggest and help arrange symposiums for the national meeting and nominate honorary fellows who have made key contributions in the Medical Sciences section. As retiring chair, Davis will also serve as a member of the AAAS Council and help nominate the next round of section leaders.
The 23 other AAAS sections address a range of concerns, from anthropology, computer science and statistics to human rights, astronomy and geology. In the past, AAAS has analyzed the federal research and development budget and, more recently, warned the scientific community about the impact a budget sequestration would have on research and development.
The 180th AAAS Annual Meeting, on Chicago Feb. 13-19, will host thousands of the world’s leading scientists, engineers, educators, policy makers and journalists.
Davis holds the Arline H. and Curtis F. Garvin Research Professorship and is a professor of pediatrics, physiology and biophysics and professor of molecular biology and microbiology at Case Western Reserve. She previously served as chief of the pediatric pulmonary division at University Hospitals Rainbow Babies and Children’s Hospital and director of the Willard A. Bernbaum Cystic Fibrosis Research Center at CWRU.
Davis has served on various boards and committees, including the Advisory Council to the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases, and the Scientific Counselors for the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute. She has received the Rosenthal Prize for Academic Pediatrics, the American Thoracic Society's Elizabeth A. Rich Award and the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation's Doris Tulcin Award. Davis holds seven patents and is a member of the Cleveland Medical Hall of Fame.
Founded in 1843, Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine is the largest medical research institution in Ohio and is among the nation's top medical schools for research funding from the National Institutes of Health. The School of Medicine is recognized throughout the international medical community for outstanding achievements in teaching. The School's innovative and pioneering Western Reserve2 curriculum interweaves four themes--research and scholarship, clinical mastery, leadership, and civic professionalism--to prepare students for the practice of evidence-based medicine in the rapidly changing health care environment of the 21st century. Nine Nobel Laureates have been affiliated with the School of Medicine.
Annually, the School of Medicine trains more than 800 MD and MD/PhD students and ranks in the top 25 among U.S. research-oriented medical schools as designated by U.S. News & World Report's "Guide to Graduate Education."
The School of Medicine is affiliated with University Hospitals Cleveland Medical Center, MetroHealth Medical Center, the Louis Stokes Cleveland Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center, and the Cleveland Clinic, with which it established the Cleveland Clinic Lerner College of Medicine of Case Western Reserve University in 2002. case.edu/medicine.
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