MSTP Faculty Committees


Executive Committee

The Executive Committee, chaired by the Director, is responsible for advising the MSTP leadership on all aspects of Program policy and management. Members of the Executive Committee are active and informed MSTP participants who have a broad involvement in educational, research and clinical programs at the University. The Executive Committee meets twice yearly to discuss issues pertinent to the MSTP training, including the evaluation and approval of MSTP faculty appointments, graduate and clinical requirements, and new program initiatives.

The Executive Committee has a diverse membership including:

Ted Abel, PhD – Professor & Head of Pharmacology

Lori Adams, PhD – Associate Professor of Biology; Director of the Iowa Biosciences Academy & the Latham Science Engagement Initiative

Alex Bassuk, MD, PhD – Professor & Head of Pediatrics

Betsy Chrischilles, PhD – Professor & Head of Epidemiology

Pamela Geyer, PhD – Professor of Biochemistry; Past MSTP Co-Director

Darren Hoffman, PhD – Assistant Professor of Anatomy & Cell Biology; Responsible for MSTP Evaluation & Assessment

Steven Lentz, MD, PhD – Professor of Internal Medicine; MSTP Director

Nitin Karandikar, MD, PhD – Professor & Chair of Pathology

Peg Nopoulos, MD – Professor, Chair & DEO of Psychiatry

Amal Shibli-Rahhal, MD, MS – Professor of Internal Medicine; Assistant Dean for Student Affairs and Curriculum

Hanna Stevens, MD, PhD – Associate Professor of Psychiatry

David Stoltz, MD, PhD – Professor of Internal Medicine & Division Head of Pulmonary, Critical Care & Occ Med; Director of the PSTP

Steven Strack, PhD – Professor & Vice Chair of Neuroscience & Pharmacology

Daniel Tranel, PhD – Professor of Neurology; Associate Dean of the Office of Graduate & Postdoctoral Studies

George Weiner, MD – Professor of Internal Medicine; Director of the Holden Comprehensive Cancer Center

Two student representatives elected from the student body, one from the first three years of training and one from latter years. These students provide a trainee’s perspective, provide transparency and facilitate communication between MSTP leadership and trainees in the program.

Admissions Committee

The Admissions Committee, chaired by Jenni Bermick, MD and James Byrne, MD, PhD, is charged with the evaluation of MSTP applications and recruitment of accepted candidates. The committee consists of approximiately 25 faculty members and 4 MSTP student members.

The Admissions Committee broadly represents graduate training opportunities at the U of Iowa. Currently, the committee includes faculty members representing twelve of the 15 graduate training programs, of which ten (43%) are full professors, eight are associate professors (35%), and five (22%) are assistant professors. The distribution of faculty rank provides an opportunity for exposure of junior faculty laboratories to applicants while maintaining institutional memory for candidate evaluation. Women represent 43% (10/23) of the Admissions Committee faculty members and underrepresented minority faculty members represent 13% (3/23). Twelve (52%) members of the Admissions Committee are physician-scientists.