University of Virginia School of Medicine records

Historical Overview of the School of Medicine

The School of Medicine* at the University of Virginia has been a key part of the University since its establishment in 1819 by Thomas Jefferson. In his early plans, Jefferson recommended the creation of a School of Anatomy and Medicine with a rigorous academic model, where students could attain medical education in nine months, a term that was twice as long as many schools at the time. Students would read, attend lectures, and watch demonstrations, but there would be few opportunities for them to work firsthand with patients, because there was no teaching hospital in Charlottesville. When the University opened its doors to students in 1825, Dr. Robley Dunglison taught all of the classes offered by the School of Anatomy and Medicine. Beginning in 1827, medical classes were held in the Anatomical Theatre, a building designed by Jefferson (though completed after his death) to accomodate a space for anatomical dissections. The study of anatomy was an important piece of early medical education; however, there was no systematic way for medical schools to obtain bodies for dissection prior to the Virginia Anatomical Act of 1884, and so cadavers were frequently procured through illegal and unethical means. Often this involved body snatching from local graves, most commonly those found in cemeteries of Virginia's slave, free black, and poor white populations.

Dunglison remained at UVA until 1833, and during that time he persuaded the UVA Board of Visitors to hire additional faculty for his medical department. In the mid-19th century, the UVA medical school was known for providing a good theoretical education. Academic activities were largely stagnant during the years of the Civil War, when Professor of Anatomy and Surgery James L. Cabell oversaw a Confederate military hospital erected in part on the Grounds of UVA, and later when Charlottesville was occupied by Union troops at the end of the war. In the decades after the Civil War, a period of biomedical revolution began to redefine the practice of medicine. In response, UVA initiated educational reforms to its medical curriculum, gradually lengthening the degree program to four years by the end of the 19th century, and introducing coursework in new fields like bacteriology and histology. In order to create increasingly important clinical opportunities for students, UVA committed to building its own facilities, including a dispensary for out-patient care in 1892 and finally a hospital, which opened in 1901. While science and medicine had entered a period of dramatic revolution, social systems were less inclined to evolve, and access to medical education at UVA remained restricted for many members of the population.

In the early 20th century, the University of Virginia was transforming into a modern university, dedicated to both education and research. At the center of this change were UVA’s health sciences programs. The University invested heavily in the School of Medicine, increasing the number of faculty in order to support emerging medical specialties and a new research mission. This period was also marked by the culmination of a fierce debate over the dual existence of state-supported medical programs in both Charlottesville and Richmond, VA. In 1921, a state-appointed commission recommended the relocation of the UVA School of Medicine to Richmond. UVA mobilized alumni and recruited political allies in order to wage a fierce campaign for the preservation of its medical program. They were ultimately successful, with the General Assembly deciding in favor of UVA. The period that followed was marked by continued expansion to the University’s academic medical center, including greater specialization across the field of medicine and an increase of students, faculty, and associated personnel throughout the health sciences programs.

Also of note during this time, in 1920 a resolution of the UVA Board of Visitors agreed to admit women into graduate and professional degree programs at UVA. The first woman to graduate from the School of Medicine, Sarah Ruth Dean, a transfer student, did so in 1922. In 1924, Lila Morse Bonner became the second woman to graduate from the School of Medicine and the first to attend all four years of medical school at UVA.

By the 1940s, public confidence in the health professions was strong among much of the U.S. public. After World War II, there was broad support for wider investment in academic medical centers. At UVA, federal grants were used to build new facilities, including the construction of a multi-story hospital tower. However, also at this time, access to education, employment opportunities, and health care at UVA continued to be unequal. With the rise of the Civil Rights movement, a combination of factors including, community activism, federal legislation, and court rulings compelled the University to start removing barriers to access. In 1953, Edward Bertram Nash and Edward Thomas Wood became the first two African Americans to be admitted to the UVA School of Medicine. Both went on to graduate in 1957.

Throughout the second half of the 20th century, the UVA health system continued to expand. A new medical education building was dedicated in 1972. (Originally named for Harvey E. Jordan, a former Dean of the School of Medicine and known proponent of eugenics; the building was renamed in honor of Dr. Vivian W. Pinn in 2016). This era of expansion also saw the opening of a nursing education building, health sciences library, primary care center, and finally, in 1989, a massive new hospital building. The 1980s and 1990s also saw efforts at the School of Medicine to increase access to the health professions among under-represented groups, including women and people of color.

Rapid developments in the health sciences continued to demand new facilities for research and education. The Claude Moore Medical Education Building opened as the new central location for the School of Medicine in 2010. Also in 2010, the School of Medicine launched a four college system, designed to preserve close student-faculty relationships and maintain a high-quality student experience while accommodating increased medical class size and a revised curriculum. Ten years later, the School of Medicine embraced further expansions with the launch of its Inova Campus in Northern Virginia, which provides clerkship opportunities for some upperclass medical students. The first cohort to spend their third and fourth years of medical school at the Northern Virginia campus arrived there in 2021.

*Note about naming conventions: Briefly known as the “School of Anatomy and Medicine” (1825-1827), the name “School of Medicine” was adopted by the Board of Visitors in July 1827. However, shortly later the name “Department of Medicine” came to be used (though some records still refer to the institution as “School of Medicine”). By the 1950s, the preferred name was again “School of Medicine”.

Deans of the UVA School of Medicine

Richard Henry Whitehead, MD, 1905-1916
Theodore Hough, PhD, [Acting Dean: 1916-1917], 1917-1924
James Caroll Flippin, MD, [Acting Dean: 1925-1927] 1927-1939
Harvey Ernest Jordan, PhD, 1939-1949
Vernon W. Lippard, MD, 1949-1953
Thomas Harrison Hunter, MD, 1953-1964 [Leave of Absence: 1962-1964]
Kenneth R. Crispell, MD, [Acting Dean: 1962-1964], 1964-1971
James T. Hamlin III, MD, [Acting Dean: 1971-1972]
William R. Drucker, MD, 1972-1977
Norman J. Knorr, MD, 1977-1986
Robert M. Carey, MD, 1986-2002
Arthur “Tim” Garson Jr., MD, MPH 2002-2007
Sharon L. Hostler, MD, Interim Dean: 2007-2008
Steven T. DeKosky, MD, 2008-2013
Nancy E. Dunlap, MD, PhD, 2013-2014
Randolph J. Canterbury, MD, Interim Dean: 2014-2015
David S. Wilkes, MD, 2015-2021
Melina R. Kibbe, MD, 2021-

Prior to Richard Henry Whitehead's appointment by the Board of Visitors to the position of Dean of the Medical Faculty (as found in the UVA Board of Visitors Meeting Minutes, July 20, 1905), the position of Dean at the UVA School of Medicine was not in use. The appointment dates listed above are derived from the Board of Visitors Meeting Minutes.