Throughout the 2020-21 academic year, we will celebrate 150 years of research and discovery, education and scholarship, and collaboration and service with a series of virtual special events and activities.
Please join us as we commemorate our past, celebrate our present, and embrace our future.
Sesquicentennial Virtual Lecture Series
This quarterly lecture series is designed to share our history and highlight advances in biomedical research, medical education, and clinical care at Iowa through academic presentations and discussions led by distinguished faculty and scholars.
The Sesquicentennial Virtual Lecture Series begins with a distinguished lecture by David Skorton, MD, who shared his vision on how academic medical centers are shaping the future of health care. Read the 5 takeaways from this lecture.
About David J. Skorton, MD
David J. Skorton, MD, is president and CEO of the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC), a not-for-profit institution that represents the nation's medical schools, teaching hospitals, and academic societies.
Skorton began his leadership of the AAMC in July 2019 after a distinguished career in government, higher education, and medicine.
Before joining the AAMC, Skorton served as the 13th secretary of the Smithsonian Institution, where he oversaw 19 museums, 21 libraries, the National Zoo, numerous research centers, and education programs.
Prior to that, he served as president of two universities: Cornell University (2006-2015) and the University of Iowa (2003-2006), where he also served on the faculty for 26 years and specialized in the treatment of adolescents and adults with congenital heart disease. A pioneer of cardiac imaging and computer processing techniques, he was co-director and co-founder of the University of Iowa Adolescent and Adult Congenital Heart Disease Clinic.
Throughout his career, Skorton has focused on issues of diversity and inclusion. A nationally recognized supporter of the arts and humanities, as well as an accomplished jazz musician and composer, Skorton believes that many of society's thorniest problems can be solved by combining the sciences, social sciences, and the arts and humanities.