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Dear Colleagues,\u200b<\/p>\n
As I\u2019m sure many of you will agree, it\u2019s been a very busy and exciting winter term, and I am grateful for the many moments of progress, celebration, and service that define life at Geisel.<\/p>\n
I\u2019ll begin with good news on the research front. In the latest Blue Ridge Institute for Medical Research rankings, Geisel was noted to have an increase in reportable NIH funding of more the $20 million, raising the school six spots in national standing. Also, kudos the Department of Microbiology and Immunology that rose to a top 10 ranking among peer departments at other U.S. medical schools. These rankings reflect the hard work and creativity of our faculty, trainees, and research teams, and they speak to the strength of our research enterprise and the collaborative spirit that drives discovery at Geisel.<\/p>\n
January also gave us an opportunity to pause and reflect on our shared values. On January 19, we came together to celebrate the 2026 MLK Service Awards at Geisel\u2019s \u201cI AM THE DREAM\u201d luncheon<\/a>. Hosted by Dr. Lisa McBride and the Office of Diversity, Inclusion, and Community Engagement, this wonderful event honored individuals and organizations whose service strengthens communities and advances Dr. King\u2019s vision of a more just and compassionate society. It was a meaningful reminder that service, inclusive excellence, and community engagement are central to who we are and how we show up in the world.<\/p>\n February brought important milestones for our students. On February 13, we celebrated the Transition Ceremony for the MD Class of 2028<\/a> at DHMC. This ceremony marks the shift from pre-clinical coursework to clinical training, and it was a proud moment to recognize how far these students have come as they begin the next phase of their medical education. While our Geisel faculty can take great pride in facilitating this transition, we all know that these students are about to meet their most important teachers\u2014their patients!<\/p>\n Our commitment to service continued with Geisel\u2019s Annual Service Gala and Silent Auction<\/a>, which raised more than $2,000 for Upper Valley Haven. Thanks to the student organizers and everyone who participated, the event was a great example of how our community comes together to support our neighbors and put our values into action.<\/p>\n Looking ahead, we are excited for Match Day on Friday, March 20. One of the most joyful days of the year, this is when our fourth-year students learn where they will continue their training in residency. We look forward to celebrating the Class of 2026 and cheering them on as they take this important and exciting step.<\/p>\n Thank you to everyone whose dedication makes these moments possible.<\/p>\n Warmly,<\/p>\n Steve<\/p>\n \u200bThe Research Efficiency Task Force is continuing to make progress. In addition, Susan Roberts, the Senior Associate Dean for Foundational Research, is working with the foundational chairs to identify additional efficiency measures that foundational faculty would like to implement. More information on these will be forthcoming!<\/p>\n Congratulations to Assistant Professor Jennifer Landino and her team for their first major research paper! Led by postdoc Gregory Schwarz, the team defined how lipids regulate dynamic signaling waves in a reconstituted cell cortex. Check it out in\u00a0Mol. Biol. Cell<\/em><\/a>.\u00a0\u200b<\/p>\n Professor Soni Lacefield\u2019s team published a paper identifying the role of MOS\/MAPK signaling pathway in formation of mammalian oocytes. Details including live-cell microscopy movies can be found in\u00a0Journal of Cell Science<\/em><\/a>.<\/p>\n A busy month of publishing for Professor Surachai Supattapone\u2019s laboratory! Dr. Katie Beauchemin published two papers from her recently defended PhD, which identified and targeted regulators of human prions (PLoS Pathogens<\/em><\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0Scientific Reports<\/em><\/a>). Another paper from the lab described how pathogenic mutations affect susceptibility to different prion forms (J Gen Virol<\/em><\/a>).<\/p>\n Finally, congratulations to Arminja Kettenbach\u2019s team for contributions to recent papers in\u00a0Nature Communcations<\/em><\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0Toxicology Science.<\/em><\/a><\/p>\n During February 1-16, the Dartmouth Global Oncology Training and Scholars Program hosted its second annual two-week intensive training program for oncology fellows and residents in Kigali, Rwanda. Led by Geisel clinical faculty member and Center for Global Health Equity (CGHE) affiliate, Dr. Mary Chamberlin, this program is building cancer care capacity throughout Rwanda, from teaching medical students to launching Rwanda's first Medical Oncology Fellowship. This year\u2019s training engaged four Geisel faculty and covered oncology, hematology, cancer prevention, and research methodology. Through CGHE\u2019s collaboration with the Global Oncology program we were able to host two Rwandan Oncology fellows at Dartmouth last fall. This activity is a direct outgrowth of CGHE\u2019s participation in the Rwandan Human Resources for Health program beginning in 2012 with colleagues at the University of Rwanda and their Ministry of Health to strengthen their healthcare education system.<\/p>\n Dartmouth Global Oncology Training and Scholars Program<\/strong><\/p>\n Feb 1-16 2026 Director: Mary Chamberlin, MD Dartmouth Cancer Center<\/p>\n Co-Director: Victoria Forbes, MD UConn Dept of Hematology<\/p>\n University of Rwanda Fellowship Program Director and Director of Cancer Research at Rwanda Cancer Center: Fidel Rubagumya, MD<\/p>\n International Faculty roster for 2026:<\/strong><\/p>\n Martha Lodyga, MD, Hematology-Oncology fellow at DHMC, PGY 6<\/p>\n Charlie Brackett, MD, Dept of Internal Medicine DHMC, Cancer Prevention and Screening lecturer<\/p>\n John Hill, MD, Dept of Hematology, Director of Allogeneic Transplant Program, Dartmouth Cancer Center<\/p>\n Ilir Hoxha, MD, MPH, The Dartmouth Institute, Evidence Synthesis Group Prishtina Kosovo<\/p>\n Philip Brooks, MD, Medical Oncology, Northern Light Health, Bar Harbor ME<\/p>\n Eric Henderson, MD, Dept of Orthopedic Surgery, Dartmouth Cancer Center<\/p>\n University of Rwanda Fellows:<\/strong><\/p>\n Martin Hakorimana Ndahiro, Class of 2026<\/p>\n Phocas Havugimana, Class of 2026<\/p>\n Fred Mugabo, Class of 2026<\/p>\n Jean Paul Manikuze, Class of 2028<\/p>\n Jean Paul Niyongira, Class of 2028<\/p>\n Egide Tuyizere, Class of 2028<\/p>\n Jean Pierre Uwiringirwa, Class of 2028<\/p>\n History: <\/strong>Since 2011, Dartmouth has had medical school faculty on the ground in Rwanda to teach medical students and residents initially through the Human Resources for Health Program. In 2014-15, this expanded to include sub-specialists in Gastroenterology and Oncology when Drs. Steve Bensen and Mary Chamberlin took sabbaticals from Geisel to begin building capacity for sub-specialty training programs. By 2023, this took the form of the first Gastroenterology Fellowship program, followed closely by the launch of the first Medical Oncology Fellowship program in Rwanda in 2024. Due to our long-standing presence in Rwanda, Dr. Chamberlin was invited by Program Director Fidel Rubagumya to collaborate on the curriculum for the medical oncology fellowship curriculum and to create a roster of international faculty for an annual 2-week intensive in-person training program. This portion of our collaboration is generously funded by the Jane McLaughlin Family Fund , and a subset of funds raised through our annual Prouty team: Dartmouth Without Borders.<\/p>\n Present: <\/strong>Today, in addition to Geisel\u2019s Dr. Chamberlin, core faculty from the University of Kosovo, Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center and the University of Connecticut \u00a0provide in-person lectures for oncology fellows and medical residents to advance their knowledge of gastroenterology, cancer prevention and screening, research methodology and hematology and oncology. We also host several medical scholars per year from Rwanda\u00a0 to come to \u00a0the US for protected research time \u00a0conferences and observation electives at Dartmouth through the Geisel Global Oncology Scholars Program. In 2023, the Rwanda Ministry of Health received a multi-million dollar donation from the Buffet Foundation to further build their sub-specialty medical training infrastructure with support for 12-15 additional fellowship programs. The first Dartmouth Global Oncology Research Scholar for 2022-25,\u00a0 Dr. Fidel Rubagumya was named as first Medical Oncology Fellowship Program Director in Rwanda in 2024. As health care infrastructure and technological capacity grows exponentially in Rwanda, additional training and bi-directional exchange programs are critical to the success of Rwanda\u2019s health care system.<\/p>\n Future:<\/strong> \u00a0\u00a0Now that we are training the newest generation of doctors and sub-specialists in Rwanda, we aim to take our programs to the next level with long-term training grants and capital campaigns to insure a successful future for the fellows and the thousands of patients they will be treating.<\/p>\n The Center\u202ffor\u202fMolecular Epidemiology has an open call for applications from scientists at Dartmouth and\u202fother IDeA\u202finstitutions to\u202fapply\u202ffor up to $85,000 to conduct a\u202fone-year\u202fpilot research study in molecular epidemiology. LOIs will be considered at any time, and prospective applicants are welcome to contact us for a preliminary conversation on scope and potential timelines. For more information, visit our website: Pilot Project Proposals and Guidelines \u2013 Center for Molecular Epidemiology<\/a>\u202for contact us at\u00a0epi.pilots@dartmouth.edu<\/a>.<\/p>\n Lynn Fiellin\u2019s play2PREVENT (p2P) Lab\u00a0was\u00a0featured in\u00a0Government Technology<\/em><\/a>. p2P received funding from Proof Positive to\u00a0design and evaluate games for students on the autism spectrum<\/a>.\u200b<\/p>\n Dartmouth\u2019s Evergreen project was\u00a0highlighted by Thrive Global CEO Arianna Huffington<\/a>. The project, a partnership between Dartmouth and\u00a0Thrive Global<\/a>, was\u00a0celebrated by Lisa Marsch and Arianna Huffington<\/a>\u00a0at the JP Morgan HealthCare Conference.<\/p>\n Madelyn Frumkin and Murray Echt were awarded the\u00a02026 Young Investigator Grant from the Lumbar Spine Research Society<\/a>.\u200b<\/p>\n Samuel Stull was awarded a\u00a02026 CPDD Travel Award for Early Career Investigators<\/a>. This award was highly competitive, offered to only 63 recipients from 148 applications.<\/p>\n Enzo Plaitano\u2019s\u00a0poster won \"Best Poster Abstract Presentation\"<\/a> from among over 200 participants at the National Association of EMS Physicians annual conference. His research was also highlighted by the National Association of Emergency Medical Technicians (NAEMT).<\/a><\/p>\n Paul Barr was promoted to Professor with Tenure! Woo-hoo!<\/p>\n Amber Barnato had an R21 funded as MPI with her colleague Deepika Mohan at Pitt, entitled \"Improving advance care planning by persons living with dementia using narrative video games.<\/a>\"\u00a0\u200b<\/p>\n The Dartmouth Institute welcomed seven wonderful finalists for an open-rank (assistant or associate professor) position, and we wish to thank everyone who attended a dinner, job talk, or one-on-one meeting. Fingers crossed we will have a successful recruitment.<\/p>\n We are excited to share that the\u00a0Geisel Academy of Educators and Scholars<\/a> received two awards for\u00a0Most Single Profession CME Live Activities in 2025<\/em>\u00a0as part of Healthcare Continuing Education Professionals Day. While these awards specifically honor both the lead planner and the coordinator, the work of the Academy leadership and administrative team is a truly collaborative effort. Special congratulations to the entire team, whose four years of dedication, creativity, and program development (from ideation, feedback, development to implementation) led to this recognition.\u00a0This achievement is a testament to a lot of hard work and passion. Congratulations to the entire team!<\/p>\n Co-sponsored by the Office of Educational Affairs and the Department of Medical Education.<\/p>\n \u200bAll \u00a0sessions are free and open to join. Please contact Kerry Schmitt.<\/a><\/p>\n Papers<\/strong>:<\/p>\n Dr. William\u00a0Eidtson -\u00a0Who and What is Publishing For? A Critically Conscious Reading of Career Guidance for Health Professions Educators<\/a>.<\/p>\n Dr. Thomas Thesen -\u00a0Fairness-aware K-means clustering in digital mental health for higher education students: a generalizable framework for equitable clustering; <\/a>and\u00a0Vitality Tracking in Kenyan Adults Using Wearable Devices and Ecological Momentary Assessments.\u00a0<\/a><\/p>\n Recognitions:<\/strong><\/p>\n Felicia Goodrum appointment to Professor with Tenure and announced as the Director of the Dartmouth International Vaccine Initiative (DIVI). She was also awarded the Wolfgang and Patricia Joklik Distinguished Service Award from the American Society of Virology. Presentation will be at the 2026 ASV conference in Minneapolis.<\/p>\n Steve Fiering\u2019s work with Nicole Steinmetz in Dartmouth News Today \"Plant Viruses: The Unsung Heroes That Deliver Drugs and Destroy Tumors.\"<\/a><\/p>\n Carey Nadell and James Winans in Dartmouth News Today \"Bacterial Hitchhikers Can Give Their Hosts Super Strength.\"<\/a><\/p>\n New funding:<\/strong><\/p>\n View 7 recent publications.<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n <\/p>\n Associate Professor Xiaofeng Wang received a new R01 award from the National Institute of General Medical Sciences for his project \"Mechanisms of SWI\/SNF complex chromatin targeting selectivity.\u201d<\/p>\n MSB welcomes Geisel medical student Cynthia Siego MED'27 as the recipient of the 2026 - 2027 Stephen Marsh Tenney, MD Fellowship. She will be working under the mentorship of Jennifer Hong, MD on the project \u201cHuman brain and glioblastoma slice culture model to study neuroimmune circuits in tumor-related epilepsy.\"<\/p>\n Dr. Tim Lin was quoted in an article<\/a> by NPR.\u00a0<\/strong>Dr. Peter Schilling has been funded by J&J MedTech\/DePuy to build and launch a federated learning initiative across robotic surgery systems.<\/p>\n Dr. Jamie Ames joined One World Surgery to complete their second successful DHMC\/BCH combined service trip on January 12 - 17 in the Dominican Republic.\u00a0 The trip included surgeons from DHMC\/BHC: Drs. Ames, Bae and Moe along with an anesthesia team: Drs. Damron and Roth.<\/p>\n Dr. Meghan Malloy worked with RJOS medical students across the country supporting a fracture forum that had over 80 attendees.<\/p>\n Dr. Leah Gitajn was featured in the Vitals Magazine<\/em> article: Battling the Antibiotic Apocalypse.<\/a><\/p>\n Multiple members of our Orthopedic faculty were named as Castle Connolly Top Doctors.<\/a><\/p>\n Thoracic Surgery<\/strong>: Congratulations to Dr. Dana Ferrari-Light of thoracic surgery and Dr. Feller-Kopman of interventional pulmonology on performing the 1st<\/sup>\u00a0combined robotic bronchoscopy and robotic sub-lobar resection under a single anesthesia at DHMC. Robotic bronchoscopy was used to navigate to a 7 mm nodule in the right upper lobe. The nodule was then biopsied and marked with dye and was able to be resected via robotic-assisted thoracic surgery. This technique allowed them to precisely locate the nodule deep to the pleural surface, spare lung parenchyma during the resection, and provide real-time diagnosis and therapy for a patient under a single anesthesia event. This represents another unique offering to our patients here at Dartmouth and exemplifies our excellent collaborative multidisciplinary thoracic oncologic care.<\/p>\n Neurosurgery:<\/strong> Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center is at the forefront of epilepsy care, leading the way in a groundbreaking Phase I\/IIa, multi-center clinical trial of AMT-260\u2014a first-in-human gene therapy for temporal lobe epilepsy. This innovative treatment uses a harmless virus (AAV9) to deliver genetic instructions directly to the part of the brain involved in seizures, allowing doctors to quiet abnormal brain activity with extraordinary precision. It is the first therapy of its kind designed specifically for people with temporal lobe epilepsy.\u00a0 Our epilepsy team (PI: Dr. Barbara Jobst; Co-I: Dr. Jenny Hong) enrolled the second patient in the nation to receive this pioneering therapy. On July 30th, the team peformed the first-ever MRI-guided intracranial drug infusion at DHMC, setting a new standard for precision and innovation in neurological care. Six months after the procedure, the patient has experienced no adverse events and reports a significant reduction in seizures. This landmark trial exemplifies the excellence of Dartmouth's clinical and research teams in providing transformative care for patients, and highlights DHMC\u2019s role as a leader in advancing medicine through collaboration and innovation.<\/p>\n Transplant Surgery: <\/strong>Congratulations to Dr. Michael Daily, Section Chief of Transplant Surgery, and his kidney transplant team for achieving the best 3-year patient and graft survival rates in the country based on data collected from January 2020 - June 2022 by the Scientific Registry of Transplant Recipients (SRTR)!\u00a0 Our kidney transplant volumes continue to increase with the growth of our living-related program and with the absorption of patients from the recently closed University of Vermont program.<\/p>\n Urology: <\/strong>Congratulations to Florian Schroeck, MD, MS on achieving final approval and funding to start the \"VATSIT\" trial - \u201cVA randomized Trial of Surveillance Intervals after Transurethral resection of high-grade bladder tumors\u201d. This will be a paradigm-changing trial, examining whether the surveillance intensity for patients with high-grade, non-muscle invasive bladder cancer can be reduced without negatively impacting oncologic outcomes. If successful, this trial could spare tens of thousands of Veterans the need for frequent invasive cystoscopy procedures and eventually impact bladder cancer surveillance nationally and internationally.\u00a0The trial is powered to show that low-intensity surveillance is non-inferior in terms of overall survival, bladder-cancer specific survival, and need for radical treatment. Dr. Schroeck will be the national study chair for this trial, and the Chair\u2019s Office will be located at the White River Junction VA. The first phase of the trial will start in 2026 with the opening of approximately ten sites. Enrollment will last 6 years with a minimum of 4 years follow-up for enrolled participants.<\/p>\n
\nDEAN'S OFFICE UPDATES<\/h1>\n
Faculty Affairs Updates<\/h2>\n
Congratulations to the following faculty whose promotions will become effective July 1, 2026:<\/div>\n\n
\nResearch Updates<\/h2>\n
\nDEPARTMENT & CENTER UPDATES<\/h1>\n
Biochemistry & Cell Biology<\/h2>\n
\n<\/a>Center for Global Health Equity<\/h2>\n
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\nCenter for Molecular Epidemiology<\/h2>\n
\nCenter for Technology and Behavioral Health<\/h2>\n
\nThe Dartmouth Institute for Health Policy & Clinical Practice<\/h2>\n
\nGeisel Education Affairs<\/h2>\n
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\nMedical Education<\/h2>\n
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\n<\/a>Microbiology & Immunology<\/h2>\n
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\nMolecular & Systems Biology<\/h2>\n
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\nOrthopaedics<\/h2>\n
\n<\/a>Surgery<\/h2>\n
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\u00a0 Save the Date<\/h1>\n\n
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